Noah Okafor isn’t involved in international duty this week, meaning that he has time on his side to keep working towards being able to play 90 minutes for Leeds United.
The main criticism of Leeds at the moment under Daniel Farke is whether they’re going to score enough goals to stay in the Premier League.
Five teams have scored fewer than United’s seven goals – six of those coming in the last three games. Meanwhile, the addition of Noah Okafor is clearly going to be vital.
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Can Noah Okafor play a full 90 minutes for Leeds United yet?
Okafor has been integral to Leeds’ attack becoming potent in the Premier League. He’s scored two of his own and looks a vital outlet out on the left, causing untold problems to his opposite number.
His presence out wide has proved to be an important part of how Leeds create chances. Conversely, it was also evident how much weaker United looked when he went off against Spurs.
Leeds managed four shots after Okafor went off on the 79th minute, but Spurs dropping significantly deeper helped their push for a leveller. Ultimately, Leeds could have capitalised on gaining this territory by having Okafor still on the pitch.
Noah Okafor scored his first Elland Road goal for Leeds United at home to Spurs. (Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers)
However, he’s yet to complete a full 90 minutes in Leeds colours. Such a development represents a concern for Leeds. He’s currently the most exciting player in the lineup, like conjuring magic out of thin air, and therefore needs to stay on as long as possible.
Noah Okafor sending message to Daniel Farke as he continues fitness work away from Leeds United
Getting Okafor to a place where he’s capable of consistently playing for 90 minutes is going to be huge for Leeds and Farke.
The Swiss winger himself is making sure he’s in the best place possible during this international break. Again snubbed from Murat Yakin’s squad, he’s utilising some time off this week to put in the hard yards.
He shared this post on his Instagram story hitting the running track:
Farke will no doubt be happy with his £18million signing. He did, though, make this assessment of him after his full league debut against Fulham:
“Noah is not the guy who covers lots of distance, he’s more like the player with unbelievable skills, one against one, and he can be the spark for our offensive game,” Farke said, per The Athletic.
While the general consensus on Okafor should be overwhelmingly positive so far, if Farke wants United’s most expensive signing to reach his full potential, getting “lots of distance” and full 90s is the next step.
This work behind-the-scenes should hopefully get Okafor much closer to that. With Burnley up next, his form peaking would come at the perfect time.
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