Leeds United reporter Joe Donnohue has described an update on midfielder Ao Tanaka as “far from ideal” following Ilia Gruev’s injury.
Gruev out for months not weeks as Leeds consider free-agent market
The Whites’ injury list has grown over the last week, with club captain Ethan Ampadu suffering a serious knee injury against Coventry City in the Championship at the end of September. It has been confirmed that Ampadu will be out until 2025, and his midfield partner Gruev will also be joining him in the Thorp Arch treatment room.
The Bulgaria international had to be replaced in Leeds’ 1-1 draw with Norwich City in the week, and scans have since confirmed Gruev has sustained a serious meniscus injury that will keep him out for months rather than weeks.
As a result, Daniel Farke now has just Tanaka and loanee Joe Rothwell as his senior midfield options, with teenager Charlie Crew likely to feature in regular matchday squads between now and the New Year. There is also the opportunity to bring in a midfielder without a club, and Farke has claimed the free agent market will be checked by those at Elland Road.
“If I’m really honest, I’m not a big friend of signing players who are out of contract in the beginning of October, because it means, more or less, they are out of team training since May. That means they are out of team training since whatever, five months.
“And even if you bring them in, it lasts also a while until they are really ready to go and fully fit and really could play first team football and then, quite often the player who is right now injured for the next few weeks, he’s even back in perhaps and ready to go earlier than the players who are out for since five months.
“I think quite often it’s a bit like a panic buy or like to pretend to do something anyhow. I think it’s professional to check it, and sometimes, out of coincidence or out of a special situation, there could be someone out who really suits the needs in this moment.”
In the meantime, Leeds will need to wrap Tanaka and Rothwell up in cotton wool, however, the former is set to rack up the air miles in the upcoming international break.
Ao Tanaka international break update “far from ideal”
The summer signing has been called up to the Japan squad for games against Saudi Arabia in Jeddah on Thursday, October 10 before a meeting with Australia five days later.
As YEP reporter Donnohue alludes to, Tanaka will be travelling around 18,000 miles and may not be back at Thorp Arch until Leeds’ final training session prior to their crunch clash with Sheffield United on Friday, October 18.
Leeds officials will be having everything crossed that Tanaka returns to Yorkshire later this month injury-free, as his partnership with Rothwell over the coming months could be crucial for the club’s promotion push.
The 26-year-old’s limited appearances so far have seen him record an impressive pass completion percentage of 91.9%, as per WhoScored.
