What Lucas Perri was seen doing after Ao Tanaka salvaged a point for Leeds United vs Liverpool

Add as preferred source on Google

Ao Tanaka scored his second goal of the week to salvage a point for Leeds against Liverpool.

Having already netted a screamer against Chelsea on Wednesday, the Japan international was the hero once again for Leeds as he popped up in the 96th minute to slam the ball past Alisson.

After Ao Tanaka made it 3-3 to send Elland Road into raptures, the emotions got to Lucas Perri.

Lucas Perri spotted leading Ao Tanaka chant after Leeds United equalise against Liverpool

It was a mixed evening for the Brazilian, who flapped at the ball when Hugo Ekitike put Liverpool two goals ahead but redeemed himself with an excellent stop from Virgil van Dijk late on.

Nevertheless, Perri was overjoyed to see his teammates snatch a point, as Sky Sports cameras picked up the South American waving his arms towards fans to lead the Tanaka chant, bellowing “AO” in jubilation.

We are unable to embed the footage due to copyright reasons, but you can see it for yourself on X by clicking the letter itself.

Having been mobbed by his fellow outfielders while Perri led his chant, Tanaka is quite clearly a popular figure in the dressing room as he begins to truly step up for Leeds.

Daniel Farke proved Leeds United fans wrong over Ao Tanaka

Some Leeds fans were annoyed to see Tanaka start on the bench against Liverpool after playing so well in the win over Chelsea.

However – as he admitted in his press conference on Thursday – Farke felt Tanaka needed a rest after starting against Manchester City and Chelsea.

It ensured the Leeds No.22 was fresh when he replaced Ilia Gruev in the 65th minute, and he played a key role as the Whites fought back from 2-0 down to make it 2-2 within just ten minutes of his introduction.

It also ensured Tanaka had the energy and alertness to react in the 96th minute to save a point for Leeds, proving Farke handled the situation perfectly despite initial backlash.