“Two days off! Two days off!”
Though muffled, that seemed to be the chant heard from the away dressing room at Molineux on Saturday. Anyone of a Leeds United persuasion standing in the tunnel was grinning as they strained their ears to hear the chorus after the 3-1 win over a winless Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Then came a cheer as the players’ request was, seemingly, granted by manager Daniel Farke. Midfielder Ao Tanaka was the first to emerge for his post-match drills and confirmed Sunday and Monday would be their own.
It’s the currency many footballers have traded in with their managers over the years: a bonus day off for wins.
Veterans like Neil Warnock, Sam Allardyce and Martin O’Neill subscribed to this type of incentive, according to their former players. In 2025, based on this Leeds reaction, it remains the ultimate pay-off.
Wolves ended the afternoon dominating the key statistics, except for the one which matters.
One of Leeds’ most effective outlets came down the left flank, as Gabriel Gudmundsson, Anton Stach and Noah Okafor repeatedly cut through the home defence.
As the most expensive signing in the United attack this summer, Okafor will be expected to shoulder a significant portion of the goals and assists. There was promise at Fulham last weekend, but this was another step, or should I say dribble, forward for the Swiss international on Saturday.
The headline, of course, has to be the goal Okafor scored in the 45th minute, his team’s third. He was quick in thought, quick with his feet and clinical off his weaker left foot. These are the far-from-easy chances Leeds need Okafor to capitalise on.
It was the goal his overall performance had warranted. Naturally, as an £18million (€20.8m, $24.3m) purchase at a newly promoted club, Okafor was not perfect, but in a team where attacking output has been questioned he looked the most threatening outlet.
The former AC Milan player has the ability to beat a man in the penalty box. As early as the sixth minute, he dropped in from the left flank and caused problems in the home defence as he went past, not for the first time, Wolves defender Emmanuel Agbadou.
In the 13th minute, he went on one of his many long drives upfield. Okafor can be their out-ball, either directly or via a knock-down from Dominic Calvert-Lewin. On this occasion, his pass was cut out, but his pace and movement show it’s an option.
Less than five minutes later, Pascal Struijk found him wide left, near the halfway line, but it’s here some of his frustrating play emerges.
Wolves defender Jackson Tchatchoua presses Okafor initially, forcing him back. Under pressure, the winger then tries a pass to Brenden Aaronson, a move which is nowhere near on. Wolves midfielder Fer Lopez blocks, but the ball luckily bounces back to Okafor.
He does not learn his lesson, however. He tries another loose attempt, now in his own half, which Lopez intercepts again, but this time retains and finds a team-mate for a Wolves counter. On the touchline, Farke was visibly furious with such loose and careless play.
Only two minutes later, there was a glimpse of Okafor’s one-on-one ability, but there was inconsistency in the clutch moment. Ethan Ampadu had drilled the ball into him on the left. He controlled, looked up and readied to dribble into the box.
He drives at Tchatchoua, throws the wing-back off balance and then cuts back on himself, into the direction of Ladislav Krejci. He has the agility to beat the Wolves defender and, after taking two opponents out of the game, you expect him to offload with Wolves out of shape.
However, the 25-year-old gets greedy and is dispossessed by Lopez who launches another Wolves counter-attack. The Swiss can beat a man, even two, but his final decision is not always the right option.
There was more from Okafor in the second half as Wolves began to stretch and leave space to be exploited. United’s only shot of the second period came because of the forward.
The burgeoning partnership with Calvert-Lewin is there to see, too. As the striker drops in to receive a pass from Okafor, the latter attacks the space and gets the ball back.
He knocks it past Agbadou, who he had on toast for most of the afternoon, while the rest of his team-mates attack the box. Okafor takes the ball virtually to the byline, but then chops inside for another yard on Agbadou.
By this point, Stach is arriving on the edge of the area for his cutback. The German gets crowded and rolls it on for Sean Longstaff’s tame effort, Leeds’ only shot of the half.
He inevitably began to tire as the game went beyond the hour mark as he is still building his match stamina. In the 61st minute, he took full advantage of Wolves’ over-extension in an example of what Leeds need from him.
United broke from a Wolves set-piece. Crucially, Okafor had the pace to beat a sprawling Joao Gomes for the ball, and then he was into an acreage of space.
Tchatchoua and Agbadou, no doubt sick of the sight of Okafor by this point, are the right-sided defenders trying to shut him down. They converge on him, but Okafor has the quality to weave his way through their lacklustre challenges.
Okafor then sees Calvert-Lewin fighting with the other two centre-backs to get onto his telegraphed through ball. The striker is ultimately denied by the two defenders’ attentions, but you can see just how well-judged Okafor’s pass was.
Okafor has his goal now. That will do wonders for his confidence, as he told The Athletic earlier this month. The next step is to be more consistent and improve his staying power.
He may not prove to be the Raphinha of United’s previous season in the Premier League, but in two starts there are plenty of signs he can be the difference-maker they need.
(Top photo: Dan Istitene/Getty Images)