‘Could Play A Role’ – NT Skipper Won’t Write Leeds United Star Off | OneFootball

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Switzerland national team skipper Granit Xhaka thinks that Leeds United winger Noah Okafor could still have a role to play for the national team, but stressed there are a host of attacking options for the Nati.

Leeds’ players were impressed by Okafor’s talents when they played AC Milan in a pre-season friendly and the Yorkshire side signed him by paying a hefty fee to the Italian giants.

Okafor has netted two goals in eight Premier League games and such are the level of his performances that he has been dubbed ‘horrible’ for defenders to play against.

Despite his good form with Leeds though, Okafor has not been called up to the Switzerland squad and that has angered him.

The 25-year-old recently made headlines as he accused national team boss Murat Yakin of overlooking him during the selection procedure for the Switzerland squad, something which saw the team director hit back.

Xhaka thinks that Leeds star Okafor has great talent, though indicated he has rarely shown it in recent years.

He does feel that the door must be open for Okafor as he has the talent to make a difference, but highlighted a number of other Swiss attacking players who are themselves making good selection cases.

The Swiss skipper is keen to see Okafor avoid speaking out and just knuckle down instead.

When it was mentioned that Okafor accused the Swiss Football Association of cutting off contact with him, Xhaka told Swiss daily Blick:  “I do not know about that. 

“All I can say is that I think it is good to maintain contact. 

“Noah has great potential, which he has not shown often in enough in recent years.

“Now at Leeds, he is coming into his own. 

“The league suits him. There are others who have attracted even more attention. 

“Dan Ndoye, for example, has made a huge leap forward at Nottingham [Forest]. 

“As things stand today, he is indispensable in the national team! 

“[Ruben] Vargas is enormously important; he scores goals and plays for Sevilla, and he has assists. The figures currently speak for them. 

“Nevertheless, Noah could play a role in the future if he gets certain things under control better.

“Sometimes you have to keep your head down, keep your mouth shut and work hard. “

While Okafor being out of the national team has angered him, for Leeds it has taken away any possibility that he could get injured on international duty, which they will welcome.

The winger is likely to need to play a key role if Daniel Farke’s side are to push themselves away from relegation danger in the Premier League.