Leeds United supporters will be desperate for more of this outstanding duo after Cardiff City exploits: View | OneFootball

Ao Tanaka and Jayden Bogle could be two of Daniel Farke's key figures this season with Leeds United.

Saturday afternoon saw Leeds United win 2-0 at the Championship’s bottom side, Cardiff City; but two performances in particular were impressive in what Leeds fans can possibly come to expect in the long term.

Largie Ramazani’s composed finish from Mateo Joseph's intelligent flick-on around the defender put Leeds in front. Jack Alnwick then saved a poorly struck penalty from Pascal Struijk after the break, with Leeds struggling to find a way through to seal the points.

Brenden Aaronson and Ramazani had missed other high-quality chances. However, a well-taken goal by substitute Joel Piroe eventually secured the victory from Aaronson's through-ball into the left channel.

Ramazani may have bagged on his full debut, but Leeds also have other new signings who are only just bedding in during the early games this season. Here, we take a look at two of those who could become key pieces of the puzzle for Daniel Farke over the course of this season.

Ao Tanaka's potential impact for Leeds

Leeds sold Georginio Rutter this summer without signing a central attacking midfielder to replace him, meaning Farke will be searching for solutions to particular problems within his squad. There's no doubt that the Frenchman was one of Leeds' best players and one of the Championship's best creators, and that they would be worse off without him after failing to recruit an established specialist in the playmaker role.

Despite failing to add a natural number 10 to their squad, the Whites have one of the strongest attacks in the league yet again and creativity must be found throughout the team, with the squad arguably more balanced in terms of the profiles within it this summer.

Leeds have been accused of looking pedestrian and laboured in possession by some fans this season and towards the end of last year. Supporters have been particularly unimpressed when they have struggled against teams compacting the middle of the pitch or sitting deep in a low block, and solutions to that problem have been few and far between.

One of the areas that could help to generate more chances would be to play just one of Ilia Gruev or Ethan Ampadu next to one of either Joe Rothwell or Ao Tanaka. Tanaka came on late in the game, but offered more in terms of ball progression, with more accurate long balls than Gruev made in the whole game.

Tanaka completed 25 out of 25 passes despite coming on in the 90th minute, which was nine more than any Cardiff player in the whole match, and he could prove to be a real tempo setter long-term. His passes are punchier and provide more balance next to a deeper defensive-minded midfielder.

In that sense, he should provide a different dimension to Leeds, with a more progressive, creative spark from the base of midfield. It's an inevitability and only a matter of time with Tanaka taking a spot in the team, but he can be the true controlling influence. He will demand the ball and show intent to move it forwards, whilst also having the intelligence to slow down the tempo and retain possession when required, too.

That metronomic influence has been evidenced in his late cameo appearances, but needs to become something which is seen via starting games. Farke is unlikely to change his system too much, but one way of finding solutions could be to pick better profiles for the roles in the team, such as Tanaka.

He demanded the ball and looked so comfortable and assured with it, rarely hesitating to make a quick pass for even a split-second, which cannot be said of other players in Leeds ranks.

Jayden Bogle's attacking upside could be a solution to losing Rutter

Although he was not always found down the right-hand channel, Jayden Bogle was one of Leeds’ outstanding players and biggest outlets in the game. In recent fixtures, Leeds have not seen as much of his attacking upside, but Bogle’s attacking contribution was at its very best on Saturday.

Per FBref, Bogle has created 1.5 xA (expected assists) worth of chances so far this season. Crucially, 0.6 of that figure came against Cardiff. When Leeds are able to dominate their opponent, he is one of their biggest assets to stretch the pitch and also as a source of genuine productivity in the final third.

The switch ball was on for him on numerous occasions and he was desperately unlucky not to bag his first assist for the club when Aaronson placed a shot wide. However, the performance was important after Bogle came under some criticism for a few of his recent performances.

Leeds fans want to see more of this side of his game than playing too deep where he is less involved in attacking play. He also won the penalty and created the best quality chances of any player in the match, during what was his best performance in a Leeds shirt so far.

The 24-year-old may have defensive deficiencies, but Bogle was acquired as an attack-minded full-back, and the net gain of that should be seen in the long run. Not only can he help to make the right side less of a deadzone, but paired with Tanaka, he could also be found more often.

Where other options in midfield were more hesitant or reluctant to play the switched ball when it is on, Tanaka won't hesitate to play it. The likes of Tanaka, Bogle, Junior Firpo, and any iteration of the three attacking players directly behind Joseph will all need to bring more creativity and output to balance out the team this term.

The early signs shown in both players from a creative perspective and in terms of their ability to speed up the tempo are something to be excited by. If Firpo and Bogle can hold the width, and a pivot player like Tanaka can find them often, then it could ease the burden on players like Aaronson being Rutter's replacement, thus allowing the other three behind Joseph to express themselves and combine quickly closer to Joseph when facing up against a deeper block.