Report Reveals Bonus Details for Leeds United Transfer, Club Surprised by 49ers’ Negotiations
Leeds United secured the deadline day signing of Ao Tanaka from Fortuna Dusseldorf, and his debut featured a promising cameo off the bench in a 2-0 win against Hull City.
Daniel Farke’s Leeds United side remains unbeaten after four games in the Championship this season, securing consecutive victories against Sheffield Wednesday and Hull City.
The excitement surrounding Leeds’ recent wins is heightened by the immediate impact of new signings and the team’s potential as they head into September and beyond.
One of the new signings, Ao Tanaka, joined Leeds from Fortuna Dusseldorf on Friday and quickly made his debut at Elland Road.
He entered the game as a substitute shortly after Joel Piroe extended Leeds’ lead against Hull City, following Mateo Joseph’s opener.
Tanaka’s role was straightforward at that stage of the match—maintaining possession and helping to close out the game with minimal fuss in the defensive third.
Despite his limited time on the field, he completed an impressive 18 passes in just nine minutes.
One of the standout moments from Tanaka’s debut was the immediate fan response, as the crowd chanted his name to the tune of “Tequila” by The Champs.
After the game, he was encouraged by Junior Firpo to acknowledge the applause from the South Stand, along with fellow debutants Largie Ramazani and Manor Solomon.
Leeds’ pursuit of Tanaka accelerated quickly in the final week of the transfer window.
According to a recent report by Bild, Leeds’ move for Tanaka was a “surprise” to Fortuna, who initially rejected a €2.5 million (£2.11 million) bid, setting their asking price at £3.4 million.
Fortuna believed they were in a strong position to keep the midfielder.
However, Leeds returned with a bid meeting Fortuna’s demands, including an additional £421,000 in add-ons, leaving the German club with little choice but to sell their star player, who was in the final year of his contract.
Given Hull City’s deflated state after Piroe’s goal, Tanaka’s performance can’t be fully assessed, whether positively or negatively.
The timing of his introduction was ideal for him to get comfortable on the ball and build his confidence.
Tanaka has shown he has the quality to maintain possession in midfield for Leeds, but the real challenge will come if he starts against Burnley after the international break.
