{"id":435431,"date":"2025-09-19T06:27:16","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T06:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/435431\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T06:27:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T06:27:16","slug":"ao-tanaka-and-joel-piroes-chances-of-facing-wolves-revealed-after-fulham-absence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/435431\/","title":{"rendered":"Ao Tanaka and Joel Piroe’s\u00a0chances of facing Wolves revealed after Fulham absence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Leeds United boss Daniel Farke has given an update on the prospects of Ao Tanaka and Joel Piroe returning to the squad to face Wolves at Molineux.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Both Ao Tanaka<\/a> and Joel Piroe<\/a> sat out the heartbreaking last-minute defeat against Fulham through injury, in a blow to Daniel Farke<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Leeds suffered from the absence of both players as they struggled to consistently trouble Fulham\u2019s defence, with Dominic Calvert-Lewin missing Leeds\u2019 best chance<\/a> of the game. <\/p>\n

With doubts over the fitness of Dan James and Willy Gnonto<\/a> heading into the game against Wolves, Farke is currently enduring a mini injury crisis as he looks to unlock Leeds\u2019 faltering attack<\/a> in the Premier League. <\/p>\n

Now, he has provided an update on the fitness of Tanaka and Piroe as the Whites prepare for a crucial encounter against Wolves<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"AoPhoto by Robbie Jay Barratt \u2013 AMA\/Getty ImagesLeeds United manager provides update on Ao Tanaka and Joel Piroe<\/p>\n

Speaking in his weekly press conference ahead of the game at Molineux, Farke delivered the news that Leeds fans were hoping for on the availability of the injured pair. <\/p>\n

According to Farke, both players have played a full role in training in the week building up to the Wolves game and could both be involved this weekend. Farke said: \u201cFor Ao Tanaka, it was important to have the first full training week with us after his long-term injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast game, he just had two sessions before the game, so it was clear he wasn\u2019t ready for the starting line-up.<\/p>\n

MORE LEEDS UNITED STORIES<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce you have a full training session, same for Joel Piroe, then you\u2019re also back in contention, but there\u2019s also competition. Our midfield players, for example, have delivered really well, so it\u2019s also not easy.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor Ao Tanaka, who was outstanding before his injury.\u00a0 So it\u2019s competition, it\u2019s always the same.\u00a0 If you deliver, then you keep your place.\u00a0 If you\u2019re struggling a bit, there\u2019s a chance for another player who impresses, perhaps in training.\u00a0 This is how it works.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo deliver good performance in training, wait patiently for your chance.\u00a0 If you get your chance, be prepared and grab it, and then you stay in the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"JoelPhoto by James Gill \u2013 Danehouse\/Getty ImagesTanaka can help to unlock Leeds\u2019 faltering attack<\/p>\n

Although Leeds\u2019 forward line has borne the brunt of the criticism for their side\u2019s lack of Premier League<\/a> goals this season, the midfield players should also take their share of the responsibility. <\/p>\n

Farke picked a three-man midfield designed to disrupt Fulham\u2019s flow for the game at Craven Cottage, as Ethan Ampadu<\/a>, Sean Longstaff and Anton Stach<\/a> provided Leeds with a stable base which so nearly delivered a clean sheet. <\/p>\n

Leeds managed just 132 passes in the Fulham half, compared to 208 for Fulham, with Karl Darlow<\/a> playing the most passes into the final third for Leeds, with 11. <\/p>\n

Ampadu was the only other Leeds player to reach double figures, with 10 final third passes, as Stach and Longstaff made just three each, according to FotMob<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Tanaka made seven passes into the final third in the opening win against Everton, when the Leeds midfield looked its most cohesive. His return can help to take some of the strain off Farke\u2019s struggling attack.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Leeds United boss Daniel Farke has given an update on the prospects of Ao Tanaka and Joel Piroe…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":435432,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8814],"tags":[12409,748,1385,393,4884,12413,1860,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-435431","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leeds","8":"tag-ao-tanaka","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-daniel-farke","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-joel-piroe","14":"tag-leeds","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115229546598502155","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435432"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}