Daniel Farke to make Ao Tanaka decision for Leeds United clash v Coventry City
Joe Donnohue has backed Daniel Farke to hand Ao Tanaka his full Leeds United debut against Coventry City after a new Pascal Struijk update emerged.
The Whites welcome Mark Robins to Elland Road on Saturday (28 September) as they look to pick a fourth Championship win of the season and move closer to the automatic promotion places.
Farke may be without Struijk, with the Dutchman an injury doubt for Saturday afternoon’s clash and Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Donnohue expects Tanaka to start instead, with Ethan Ampadu moving back into defence.
Writing for the Yorkshire Evening Post (27 September) he said: “The Japanese midfielder should be given his full debut for Leeds, filling in at No. 8 as Gruev moves back to accommodate for Ampadu retreating to central defensive cover.”
Is Leeds United star Pascal Struijk injured at Elland Road?
Ampadu is no stranger to featuring in the backline alongside Joe Rodon. Not only has he done it for Wales on the international stage, but the Leeds United skipper spent the second half of last season at centre-back in Struijk’s absence.
While he is more than capable of impressing further back the pitch, Leeds occasionally missed his presence and energy in the middle of the park, particularly when Ilia Gruev and Glen Kamara played together.
Hopefully, in Tanaka, the Whites will have found a midfielder a bit more dynamic and forward-thinking than Kamara. Fans may not have seen loads of the Japanese international, but he has been bright in his limited appearances from the bench.
Of course, nobody will want to see Struijk sidelined, particularly for an extended stretch of time but there will be a sense of excitement in and around Elland Road if Tanaka is given the nod ahead of Joe Rothwell.
It will be interesting to see what Farke decides to do when team news drops at 2pm on Saturday afternoon.
In other Leeds United news, Chris Sutton has clashed with one Whites supporter over a new Farke verdict at Elland Road
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