Leeds United aren’t fully convinced that a move for Fortuna Dusseldorf midfielder Ao Tanaka is the right one, according to Sky Sports journalist Marlon Irlbacher.
The Whites need to improve their midfield department before the transfer window closes, with only Ethan Ampadu coming in to strengthen that area during the transfer window.
Their takeover saga may not have helped matters – but they may be disappointed that they haven’t been able to add another face or two in this area as they look to secure a quick Premier League return.
Tyler Roberts has been their most high-profile departure in the middle of the park this summer, with the United States international making the move to AFC Bournemouth.
Adam Forshaw and Marc Roca have also departed Elland Road, with the latter being released on the expiration of his contract and the latter making a loan exit to Real Betis following the Whites’ relegation.
These are players that will need to be replaced – but Daniel Farke’s side only have a limited amount of time to complete this assignment.
The Whites have been heavily linked with Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara but he is yet to be unveiled as a Leeds player and until he is, there will always be concerns about whether a deal has actually been sealed.
Werder Bremen’s Ilia Gruev has also been linked with a switch to Elland Road – and it will be fascinating to see whether that deal ends up materialising.
According to Florian Plettenberg, advanced negotiations are now taking place for Gruev to seal a switch to West Yorkshire.
And they were also believed to be in the mix for Japan international Tanaka. He suffered an injury scare after a collision in training – but he was fit to be involved yesterday and a potential move to Leeds looked to be possible again.
However, this latest update from Irlbacher on his future suggests that the 19-cap international may not end up moving to Leeds.
Should Leeds United pull out of the race for Ao Tanaka?
He doesn’t have a bad CV, thriving in his home country for Kawasaki Frontale before making the move to Fortuna Düsseldorf.
He doesn’t have any experience of playing in a top European league yet which is one drawback of signing him – but he has performed on a big stage at the World Cup and even managed to get himself on the scoresheet in Qatar.
And at 24, there’s still plenty of time for him to develop and improve, so this could be a good signing for Leeds if they manage to pull it off.
But if others are coming in and they aren’t 100% sure whether he would be a good fit, then the Whites should definitely look to pull out of this race because they probably don’t have a huge amount of money to spend during the latter stages of the window after spending big fees on Ethan Ampadu and Joel Piroe.
Using the loan market instead could be more financially viable for them but regardless of which market they use, they need to strengthen their midfield department.
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