Ethan Ampadu could be booted out of Leeds United XI
Ethan Ampadu might have a fight on his hands to regain his Leeds United starting spot due to the form of Ao Tanaka, Nancy Froston has said.
Japan midfielder Tanaka has more than filled the void left by the injured Ampadu and Ilia Gruev and has proven his worth to Daniel Farke.
Writing for The Athletic (22 November), Froston suggested that club captain Ampadu and Gruev are not certain to come straight back into the centre of the park with Tanaka potentially a crucial weapon in the fight for promotion and even in the top flight.
“Instead of just proving himself a capable deputy to either Ampadu or Gruev, Tanaka is emerging as a challenger for their starting role,” she wrote.
“Should Leeds achieve promotion to the Premier League this season, Tanaka’s quality in the centre of the pitch may just prove key.”
Ao Tanaka is now undroppable for Leeds United
When Tanaka arrived at Elland Road in the summer, most fans expected him to be a backup for Gruev and Ampadu alongside Joe Rothwell.
Instead, the summer arrivals have made the defensive midfield spots their own and have even added a bit more fluidity to Leeds’ team as a whole.
Since they were drafted into the starting XI, the Whites have played far more attacking football and seem to have been able to dominate midfield battles more often.
However, as Ampadu is on the cusp of returning to action, it seems like Farke is going to be left with something of a selection headache regarding his midfielders.
While more defensive stability is always welcome, due to the quality of Leeds’ centre-back pairing, they don’t really need any additional support from their midfielders which is likely why the attacking nature of Rothwell and Tanaka has helped the team become stronger.
Only time will tell whether the Whites will gain promotion to the Premier League but if their current run of form keeps up, it’s hard to see how they won’t manage it.
In other Leeds news, Josuha Guilavogui has compared one of his teammates to Victor Osimhen after what he’s seen him do.
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