{"id":237306,"date":"2026-04-07T17:10:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:10:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/07\/farke-can-solve-stach-injury-blow-by-unleashing-leeds-new-rutter\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T17:10:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T17:10:12","slug":"farke-can-solve-stach-injury-blow-by-unleashing-leeds-new-rutter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/07\/farke-can-solve-stach-injury-blow-by-unleashing-leeds-new-rutter\/","title":{"rendered":"Farke can solve Stach injury blow by unleashing Leeds’ new Rutter"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

The return to club football was a successful one for Leeds United<\/a> over the weekend, with manager Daniel Farke<\/a> securing new history for the Whites against West Ham United.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The German led his side to a penalty shootout victory over their Premier League<\/a> relegation rivals, subsequently securing the club a place in the FA Cup semi-finals.<\/p>\n

No Leeds manager has been able to achieve such a feat since the great Billy Bremner back in 1987, with a clash with Chelsea at Wembley the reward for their efforts.<\/p>\n

\n
\n \n <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

However, the meeting at the London Stadium wasn\u2019t plain sailing for Farke\u2019s men, especially after blowing a two-goal lead going into 11 minutes of stoppage time.<\/p>\n

That won\u2019t be the biggest concern, given the shootout win, with one other incident from the clash no doubt a bigger concern for the manager at present.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n The latest of Anton Stach\u2019s ankle injury<\/strong>
\n <\/h2>\n

Starting a near full-strength side in a cup game is always a risk to any manager, especially considering the current relegation battle that\u2019s ongoing in the Premier League.<\/p>\n

However, Farke decided to utilise a strong side against the Hammers on Sunday afternoon, with German international Anton Stach<\/a> starting at the heart of the midfield.<\/p>\n

\n
\n \"Anton-Stach\"\n <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

The 27-year-old would only last 38 minutes before being withdrawn with an ankle injury, after Max Kilman\u2019s desperate lunge saw the midfielder land awkwardly.<\/p>\n

Such a tackle somehow wasn\u2019t punished by the match officials or VAR, with the opposition defender lucky to avoid punishment for such a reckless challenge.<\/p>\n

Stach took to social media after the victory to show the extent of his injury, with the German\u2019s ankle badly swollen and presenting a sore sight for the supporters.<\/p>\n

Whilst the extent of the injury is yet to be revealed, it\u2019s likely he will miss a couple of weeks of action, which would see Farke need to consider other options to replace the 27-year-old.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n How Leeds can solve Stach injury blow<\/strong>
\n <\/h2>\n

Stach has often operated in a deep-lying or number ten role since moving to Leeds in the summer, with former star Georginio Rutter<\/a> also possessing such versatility.<\/p>\n

\n
\n \"georginio-rutter-leeds-united-transfers\"\n <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

The Frenchman, who cost a record \u00a335m in January 2023, could operate as a new number nine or in the ten, but was unable to keep the Whites in the Premier League.<\/p>\n

However, he did remain at Elland Road after relegation, with such a decision proving to be a blessing in disguise for his career – as seen by his remarkable stats.<\/p>\n

The 23-year-old would register 22 combined goals and assists during his only season in the second tier, helping the Whites reaching the play-off final at Wembley.<\/p>\n

As he was unable to secure promotion, he would depart in a deal worth a reported \u00a340m to join Brighton in the summer of 2024 – yielding a \u00a35m profit on their investment.<\/p>\n

\n\"leeds-united-record-sales-raphinha-summerville-phillips\"\n <\/picture>\n

\n
\n

\t\t
\n\t\t\tLeeds United’s most expensive sales of all time
\n\t\t<\/a>
\n\t<\/h5>\n

A look at the record departures from Elland Road.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Whilst he\u2019s no longer on the books, Farke could look to soften Stach\u2019s injury blow by handing fellow midfielder Ao Tanaka<\/a> a run of starts in the Premier League.<\/p>\n

The Japanese international joined the club for \u00a33m in the summer of 2024, subsequently being a key member of the promotion-winning squad last term.<\/p>\n

\n
\n \"Ao-Tanaka-Leeds\"\n <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

However, like Rutter at Leeds, he\u2019s struggled to meet the demands of top-flight football, as seen by his tally of just seven league starts under Farke throughout 2025\/26.<\/p>\n

Despite his struggles, the 27-year-old was handed a start in the FA Cup clash with West Ham over the weekend, with Tanaka taking the opportunity with both hands.<\/p>\n

He netted the opening goal of the encounter after 26 minutes, his second goal of the competition, which gave Farke\u2019s men the perfect start to the clash at the London Stadium.<\/p>\n

Tanaka\u2019s underlying stats also highlight his impact on proceedings, with the Japanese international having all the tools to provide an immediate replacement for the injured Stach.<\/p>\n

\n
\n \"ao-tanaka-leeds\"\n <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

He managed to complete 91% of the passes he attempted in the capital, whilst making 11 passes into the final third – subsequently creating one chance.<\/p>\n

Such numbers demonstrate his ability to dictate the play from a deep-lying role, something which the German has done after his summer move from Hoffenheim.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n

Ao Tanaka – stats against West Ham<\/p>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n

\n

Statistics<\/p>\n<\/th>\n

\n

Tally<\/p>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Minutes played<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

69<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Touches<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

60<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Pass accuracy<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

91%<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Passes into final third<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

11<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Goals scored<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

1<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Chances created<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

1<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Tackles made<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

4<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\n

Interceptions<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

2<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

Without the ball, Tanaka was just as impressive, as seen by his phenomenal tallies of four tackles and five ball recoveries made, whilst also winning five ground duels.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no denying the midfielder produced his best performances in the Championship, but he still has bags of talent to be a key member during the closing stages of the season.<\/p>\n

Tanaka\u2019s quality in and out of possession often goes under the radar in Yorkshire, with Farke already having the perfect replacement for Stach should his injury be worse than first feared.<\/p>\n

\n\"patrick-bamford\"\n <\/picture>\n

\n
\n

\t\t
\n\t\t\t\u00a310m star is fast becoming Leeds United’s new Patrick Bamford
\n\t\t<\/a>
\n\t<\/h5>\n

Daniel Farke must not start this Leeds United flop again this season. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The return to club football was a successful one for Leeds United over the weekend, with manager Daniel Farke securing new history for the Whites against West Ham United. The German led his side to a penalty shootout victory over their Premier League relegation rivals, subsequently securing the club a place in the FA Cup […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":237307,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6808],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-237306","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=237306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=237306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=237306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=237306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}