Noah Okafor breaks silence on Leeds United fitness after Daniel Farke admission
Leeds United star Noah Okafor seemed to contradict Daniel Farke when it comes to his fitness.
The Switzerland international spoke about his condition after he made his first appearance of pre-season.
The Whites were defeated on penalties by Manchester United at Croke Park after a 1-1 draw on Wednesday evening.
The 26-year-old played 45 minutes against the Old Trafford outfit after returning to training last week following his World Cup involvement.
Farke will be hoping that the former AC Milan man can have a similar impact to his eight-goal campaign last season in the Premier League.
However, he did not sound confident that he would make the opener against Nottingham Forest.
What did Daniel Farke and Noah Okafor say about his fitness?
Farke spoke about the winger's condition after the game, and he seemed to admit that he would not be ready against Oliver Glasner's side.
He said: “He needs time to be there at full fitness.
“It’s important he has a proper pre-season. He’s been with us a few days and, from a rational side, a start at Nottingham comes too soon, but let’s see how quick we can get him fit.”
However, Okafor seemed to say the opposite when he spoke to the media after the game, breaking his silence on the issue.
In quotes reported by the BBC, the attacker said: “I need a few more days to work on my fitness... then when it starts I am ready.”
His involvement at the City Ground on 22 August may well come down to the wire.
What did Okafor's performance in Leeds' friendly with Man United tell us?
Okafor completed 90 per cent of his passes against Michael Carrick's side, with two in the final third, per Fotmob data.
He had a total of 14 touches in the contest, created one chance and completed 100 per cent of his two dribble attempts.
He even contributed defensively, making three recoveries and winning 100 per cent of his three ground duels in Dublin.
Those numbers suggest that he will be ready to go, and that the boss may well be playing mind games to try and trick the Reds ahead of the game.
The Peacocks have one more friendly left, against Bundesliga side FC Augsburg, and Okafor's minutes in that clash, may well tell all about his fitness.
In an ideal world, he would return for the first league game at the season, but it will down to Farke and the medical team to decide whether that is a realistic option.
If it turns out to be too soon, then so be it, it would be better to rest him, than risk him getting a serious injury and missing a huge portion of the campaign.