Ao Tanaka’s future has become a big talking point as the Japanese international has not had much game time under Daniel Farke this season. He has been constantly linked with a move away from the club, but according to a report from Football Insider, Leeds United have no intentions of selling the 27-year-old this summer.
Tanaka joined the West Yorkshire club in the summer of 2024. He managed to establish himself as a key figure in the team in no time and played a massive part in their promotion to the top flight. He was involved in 43 Championship games and even contributed towards seven goals.
While he was a constant feature in their XI under Farke last season, a lot has changed since their promotion to the top flight. Tanaka has failed to make an impact in the top flight, and he has gone down the pecking order.
The 27-year-old did have an impressive start this season as well. However, he was eventually dropped from their starting XI after the Leeds United manager switched to a 3-4-2-1 formation. Because of the lack of game time, there has been a lot of talk about Tanaka’s future at Elland Road.
Ao Tanaka has been constantly linked with a move away, but Leeds United, who want to tie certain players to new deals, do not seem to have any intentions of negotiating his departure. They are backing the Japanese international to win back his place in the starting XI. Irrespective of the league they are in, Farke believes Tanaka will prove to be an important member of his squad.
The Japanese midfielder has only managed 911 minutes of first-team action so far. Tanaka has been an unused substitute in their last six league games, and he has only racked up 63 minutes of Premier League action since the turn of the calendar. Despite the current situation, Leeds United do not intend to sell him. They remain confident that he will bounce back and regain prominence in the team.
