Inside Elland Road: Can Leeds Utd fans hold their nerve?
Leeds United winger Noah Okafor has been in exile from the Switzerland national team for almost a year.
The Swiss FA’s sporting director has criticised Leeds United winger Noah Okafor for going public with his grievances after being left out of the most recent national team squad.
Okafor was notably absent from the Switzerland squad announcement ahead of two World Cup qualifiers against Sweden and Kosovo. The Leeds winger was also not selected by head coach Murat Yakin during the September or October international breaks and has not represented his country for almost a year.
Speaking to The Athletic after his latest snub, Okafor said: “Since then, I never spoke with the coach, not even a phone call or a message, also with the (Swiss FA’s) sporting director Pierluigi Tami. They don’t even call me or ask me.
“For me, it makes no sense. I can say it makes me sad because they don’t even text me or call me to see how I am. For example, when I moved to Leeds, ‘Congrats’ or something like that, because I play now in the best league in the world.”
Pierluigi Tami has now hit back at Okafor during a press conference ahead of Switzerland’s upcoming fixtures. The national team chief is focused on those who have been called up but believes the Leeds winger’s decision to speak out was ill-timed.
"Noah could have picked up the phone and called Yakin at any time,” Tami told Blick. “His decision to speak out now is not good. This is the wrong moment. We don't need an apology. Right now, only the team (that plays) matters. After the training camp, I'll certainly do something. But that's all in the future. I expect patience and humility from him."
World Cup hope still alive for Leeds United’s Noah Okafor
After announcing his squad, Yakin said Okafor and his attacking compatriots are judged on their goalscoring record but the Leeds winger’s two-goal tally is only bettered by two of the November squad. The former £18million Elland Road arrival suggested last week that a lack of contact after goals against Wolves and Tottenham Hotspur hints at ‘something deeper’.
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Switzerland currently top World Cup qualifying Group B and barring disaster, will qualify for next year’s tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico in top spot come next week. That will give Okafor a potential major tournament to look forward to if he can continue to affect Premier League games with Leeds.
"The door is open to everyone,” FA director Tami added. “But everyone needs to know their role. Murat Yakin certainly doesn't want to experiment this November. After that, we can resume discussions with Noah Okafor. But now is not the time. And I told Noah that personally on the phone. That doesn't mean we can't use Noah in the national team in the future. We can certainly make good use of his qualities.
"Noah had a difficult year at Milan and Napoli. Now at Leeds, he's slowly getting back into form. We're certainly keeping an eye on that. But right now, we want to focus on the upcoming matches. I don't want this situation to become a topic of conversation within the team. If a player has a problem, he needs to speak up and can't just wait and hope that someone will contact him. But again, it's about the present moment."
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