Leeds United are set to host recently relegated Burnley in the Championship at Elland Road in the early kick-off this afternoon in their first game after the international break.
The Whites went into the first break of the 2024/25 campaign unbeaten in the second tier, with two wins and two draws, and will be looking to maintain that record against the Clarets, who were relegated from the Premier League last term.
Daniel Farke’s side ran out 2-0 winners against Hull City in their last match in the Championship, thanks to goals from Mateo Joseph and Joel Piroe.
The German tactician could make a change or two for this clash with Burnley, though, and one player who could be ruthlessly dropped is midfielder Ilia Gruev
Why Ilia Gruev could be dropped
Last season, The Athletic’s Phil Hay noted that Leeds had “little” goal threat from a central midfield position and Gruev’s lack of quality in the final third played a part in that.
The Bulgaria international ended the 2023/24 campaign with zero goals and one assist in 29 regular season appearances in the Championship for the Whites.
He has started the current season with a return of zero goals, zero assists, and one ‘big chance’ created in four starts in the second tier in the middle of the park.
The left-footed whiz has started every match for Leeds so far this term but the arrival of Ao Tanaka from Fortuna Dusseldorf has provided Farke with a different option alongside Ethan Ampadu in midfield.
Gruev could now be ruthlessly ditched from the starting XI by the former Norwich City head coach, due to his lack of threat at the top end of the pitch, in order for the Japan international to be unleashed for the first time.
Why Leeds should unleash Ao Tanaka
The 26-year-old star, who made his debut off the bench against Hull, is a central midfielder who has the potential to provide quality in the final third.
Tanaka, who was lauded as “one of the most underrated midfielders in world football” by journalist Bence Bocsak, joined the Whites from the 2. Bundesliga side last month, after an impressive campaign in Germany last season.
Appearances
30
29
Goals
7
0
Assists
3
1
Big chances created
6
1
Pass accuracy
89%
92%
As you can see in the table above, the Japanese dynamo produced far more quality as an attacking threat for his side than Gruev did for Leeds in the Championship last term.
Tanaka ranked within the top 8% of midfielders in the 2. Bundesliga for non-penalty goals per 90 (0.28), which shows that he was one of the best players in his position in the division at scoring goals from open play.
Leeds are up against a Burnley team that has only conceded three goals in four games and has not let in more than one goal in any game so far.
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This suggests that they will need to be ruthless and clinical when going forward to have the best chance of penetrating that Clarets defence, which is why Tanaka should be unleashed ahead of Gruev to provide quality in attack.
