Noah Okafor ends 16-month Switzerland exile with late call-up after rift | OneFootball

Noah Okafor’s 16-month absence from Switzerland duty is over, the Leeds United winger drafted in late to replace injured Valencia midfielder Filip Ugrinic amid a thaw in his stand-off with Murat Yakin.

The player said in a post that he was grateful to return, would give everything to help the team, and that his World Cup dream remains alive. He now has the chance to add to 24 caps and two goals.

Okafor featured for 43 minutes across three substitute outings at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Tensions appeared to surface in summer 2024, with Yakin’s Euro 2024 stance stressing the need for Okafor to win his place through performances, and the then AC Milan forward did not play a minute at the tournament.

After two squad omissions he briefly returned for Nations League fixtures in November 2024, then was overlooked again. Yakin maintained the door was open and, as recently as November, outlined expectations for Okafor on and off the pitch.

The rift seems to have cooled. Okafor came off the bench in Saturday’s goalless draw with Brentford, his first appearance after a month out with a hamstring issue.

Switzerland face Germany on Friday, with Leeds colleague Anton Stach called up by the hosts for the first time in almost four years, then meet Norway and Leeds-born Erling Haaland on Tuesday.

Loaned-out Leeds defender Isaac Schmidt, at Werder Bremen, misses out after Yakin had indicated he would travel to the World Cup with regular minutes. He has played 105 minutes since the start of February.

Source: Leeds Live