Ao Tanaka has been nothing but a saint at Leeds United, but the midfielder was caught out vs West Brom, and it left Daniel Farke raging.
Leeds United will want to bounce back after a fairly poor showing against West Brom on Saturday.
Junior Firpo’s opener nine minutes in got Leeds fans believing they’d continue their fine winning form, but Darnell Furlong put an end to that.
Despite this, Farke’s side stretched their unbeaten run to 17, in a game where Leeds fans booed Adam Armstrong after he rejected the Whites in January.
Tanaka, in a rare occurrence, might have been the subject of anger from the Whites faithful, but he definitely was from Farke’s point of view.
What Ao Tanaka did for Leeds United which left Daniel Farke fuming
As mentioned before, the 26-year-old has been a revelation for the Whites, as Tanaka has been compared to Archie Gray.
That’s some praise after the youngster made a £40m move the next summer, but Leeds fans will be hoping the Japanese international doesn’t follow suit.
Tanaka’s £3.4m fee was ‘amazing’ business, but Farke wasn’t too happy with the midfielder in the 1-1 draw with the Baggies.
Farke was spotted showing his fury to Tanaka at one stage during the encounter at Elland Road.
The Japan international had given the ball away, meaning he left a gap in the midfield a few times that West Brom took advantage of.
Tanaka is ever so relied upon at Leeds, but it seems as though the midfielder isn’t perfect after all.
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Farke demands high expectations off Tanaka at Leeds
It has seemed since his arrival that Tanaka has been the subject of Farke’s anger on a few occasions.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, of course, the incident against West Brom was, but it seems the Leeds boss demands big expectations off the midfielder.
Tanaka’s ability is what has kept Leeds ticking this season, and Farke may have the ambition to heighten the 26-year-old’s status in the squad.
Farke isn’t completely satisfied with Tanaka, despite Leeds fans showing such admiration for the fan favourite.
Despite Farke’s demand, Tanaka is very happy at Leeds, and it seems the Whites boss’ comments might fuel him to become better.
The West Brom game will no doubt be a one-off, but Tanaka will have to be wary of Farke’s temper getting the better of him again.
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