Leeds United were left frustrated at the weekend after their 1-0 defeat to Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park pushed out them outside of the automatic promotion places.
The Whites went into the gameweek in first place but Sheffield United’s 1-0 win over Sunderland on Friday meant that they travelled to Lancashire in second.
A win would have moved them back to the top of the table but, instead, a penalty from Todd Cantwell was enough to seal all three points for the home side.
Burnley’s win later that day then meant that the West Yorkshire outfit ended the weekend in third place, outside of the top two and back inside the play-off places.
Daniel Farke will be hoping that his side can avoid the play-offs this time around, after losing to Southampton in the final last season, and the German head coach could use the January transfer window next month to bolster his squad.
Adding an attacking threat from a midfield position could be one of the items on his agenda, as the Whites have struggled to provide much in the way of quality from that area of the pitch.
Leeds United's attacking contributions from midfield
In the 2024/25 campaign, Ao Tanaka, Joe Rothwell, Ethan Ampadu, and Ilia Gruev have combined for zero goals and one assist in the Championship, with Rothwell providing it.
This shows that Farke does not have a regular source of goals or creativity from his options in the middle of the park, which has hindered the team when the attacking players have not been at their best.
That was also an issue for the German boss during the 2023/24 season, as the likes of Ampadu, Gruev, Archie Gray, despite playing at right-back as well, and Glen Kamara all failed to offer much in the final third.
Ethan Ampadu
49
0
1
Glen Kamara
36
0
3
Ilia Gruev
23
1
1
Archie Gray
43
0
2
As you can see in the table above, those four players combined for just one league goal in the entire campaign, which was Gruev’s free-kick against Norwich in the second-leg of the play-off semi-finals.
In his two title-winning seasons with Norwich in the Championship, Farke had central midfield players with the quality to provide goals and assists to help out the attack.
Kenny McLean and Mario Vrancic combined for five goals and 11 assists in the 2020/21 campaign. Vrancic, McLean, Tom Trybull, and Moritz Leitner also combined for 16 goals and 14 assists in the 2018/19 season.
These statistics show that the German tactician always had midfield players who could step up with goals and assists to help his team to promotion in both of those seasons, whilst he – simply – does not have that level of attacking quality in that area of the pitch at Elland Road.
However, Farke could bring in a player with the potential to improve that side of the team’s performance during the January transfer window.
Leeds United's interest in Scottish starlet
The Boot Room recently reported that Leeds United are one of a number of clubs interested in signing Motherwell central midfielder Lennon Miller ahead of the second half of the season.
It was claimed that the Whites have sent scouts to watch the Scotland U21 international in action in the Scottish Premiership, but they are far from alone in that respect.
A host of Premier League clubs, including Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool, Chelsea, and Brighton, have also been sending scouts to keep tabs on his performances north of the border.
The Boot Room added that Rangers and Celtic are also interested in keeping him in Scotland, whilst Atalanta and Bologna pose a threat from the Serie A.
This shows that Leeds face plenty of competition from some huge clubs across the United Kingdom and Europe, which means that it could be a difficult deal to get over the line in January.
Transfer Focus
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.
It was also claimed that Motherwell are set to demand a fee of around £5m for their impressive academy graduate, who the Whites must now push to win the race for as he could be a dream signing for Tanaka and Farke.
Why Lennon Miller would be a dream signing for Ao Tanaka
The Scottish sensation has been in impressive form for Motherwell in the Premiership this season and his performances suggest that the potential is there for him to come in and offer the Whites what they currently lack in the middle of the park.
Tanaka has been a fantastic performer in midfield since his move from Fortuna Dusseldorf, with a 92% pass completion rate and 3.5 tackles and interceptions per game across 15 outings in the Championship.
He has provided a metronomic and combative presence for the West Yorkshire outfit, with his ability to retain possession at an impressive rate, whilst also being able to consistently make defensive interventions to win the ball back for his side and cut out attacks for the opposition.
However, Tanaka has yet to score his first goal for Leeds and has not provided any assists from midfield, which suggests that he could thrive alongside a midfielder who can offer more quality at the top end of the pitch.
Appearances
15
13
Goals
0
2
Big chances created
0
6
Assists
0
4
Key passes per game
0.8
2.0
Pass accuracy
92%
74%
As you can see in the table above, Miller has provided regular quality from a midfield position for Motherwell, with eight goals and ‘big chances’ combined in 13 games.
The 18-year-old star, who was described as a “ridiculous” talent by pundit James McFadden, still has plenty of years left ahead of him to take his game to another level and offer even more in the final third.
Therefore, Miller could come in as a dream midfield partner for Tanaka, as the Japanese maestro can provide defensive strength and passing quality, whilst the Scottish ace can offer a big threat as a scorer and a creator to add another side to the team’s attacking play.
Leeds have found a "monster" who's now a potential £50m star in the making
Daniel Farke has hit the jackpot with the impressive Leeds United leader.
ByDan Emery Dec 2, 2024