Credit: Imago

Mark Smith

Thu 28 May 2026 17:10, UK

Ao Tanaka bounced back in superb style at Leeds United this season.

After starting the season with a Man of the Match award in the 1-0 win over Everton, the Japanese international would go on to pick up an injury.

Forced off against Arsenal in the second game of the season, it would start a sticky path at Elland Road.

It wasn’t until December that he would fully return with a bang after weeks of being benched, scoring against Chelsea and Liverpool in the week that turned everything around.

Leeds would go on to secure Premier League survival with ease, but another period to forget followed for Tanaka, who eventually ended the season with another run in the team.

Ao Tanaka admits life-changing issue at Leeds

Daniel Farke is known to have his favourites, and once you are in the Leeds side, you aren’t likely to drop out unless something huge happens.

Tanaka admitted that the early-season injury actually changed his life in LS11, given his struggles that followed getting back into the team.

Speaking to Hochi News ahead of the World Cup, Tanaka made it clear that he still wanted to play an even bigger role than he did at Elland Road.

“If that hadn’t happened, I could have played in more matches, established myself as a player, and earned more points,” he started.

“It changed my life.”

How Ao Tanaka turned things around at Leeds United

Despite shining in the new formation for Farke around Christmas, Tanaka would drop out of the team for the likes of Ilia Gruev and Sean Longstaff.

At the time, fans were baffled, and that has never disappeared.

During that time, Tanaka was shining in the FA Cup, scoring against Derby and also West Ham in the quarter-finals before taking the Whites to Wembley.

With Gruev and Anton Stach now injured, Tanaka started the final seven games and played a huge role in keeping Leeds in the Premier League.

Everybody remembers that 2-1 win at Old Trafford for Noah Okafor’s two goals, but Tanaka was everywhere on that pitch and was the unsung hero.

Hopefully, with a massive World Cup for Japan behind him, the midfielder can go on to become a regular Premier League star for Leeds next season.