Leeds United coach shocked by what he saw Ao Tanaka do in unseen Sunderland moment
Ao Tanaka continues to leave Leeds United team-mates, coaches and fans in shock at just how well he has played this season.
The Japanese international has gone from a mere £3.3million signing late in the summer window to one of the first names on Daniel Farke‘s team-sheet, proving to be an absolute metronome in midfield.
Tanaka was far from Leeds’ standout player in Monday’s last-gasp victory over Sunderland at Elland Road, but he was still responsible for a key moment in the game which swung the balance in their favour.
Both Tanaka and Ilia Gruev were substituted by Farke in the 71st minute for Joe Rothwell and Pascal Struijk to enter the fray, and the pair combined twice late on to secure a 2-1 victory for the Whites.
Ao Tanaka causes ‘shock’ ahead of Leeds United v Sunderland
Though Tanaka didn’t put in his strongest display – of which there’s been many – against the Black Cats, the 26-year-old was responsible for one moment pre-match which was spotted by Graham Smyth.
The Yorkshire Evening Post journalist reported on 18 February that after doing his “customary” extra sprints after a possession game in the warm-up, Tanaka left goalkeeping coach Ed Wootten in shock.
Tanaka “effortlessly” took the ball under his strike and smashed a shot with “very little backlift” right into the top corner at Elland Road, with Wootten taken aback at the Japan midfielder’s confidence.
Ao Tanaka defying expectations at Leeds United
Tanaka leaving jaws on the floor at Leeds with the silky and uber-confident nature of his play is nothing new this season, with Leeds fans most surprised at how they managed to pluck him from obscurity.
Signing a player of his ability from the 2. Bundesliga in Germany for less than £3.5m is unheard of in the modern-day transfer market, and other clubs’ fans will be just as surprised that Leeds found him first.
A full Japanese international with 29 caps and eight goals to his name – including one against European champions Spain at the 2022 World Cup – it’s baffling as to how no other sides were in for Tanaka.
Leeds are certainly happy about that, and having returned to the top of the Championship by beating Sunderland, they open up a seven-point gap to third-placed Burnley in the automatic promotion race.
There’s no denying that recruitment of proven Premier League quality will be needed for the Whites to kick on next season, but in Tanaka, they’ve already got one player capable of making the big step up.