(Credit: Imago)

Jacob Raw

Sun 22 March 2026 11:10, UK

Leeds United‘s draw to Brentford on Saturday taught us more than one thing, and Daniel Farke may have now learnt it’s time to drop Lukas Nmecha in place of Noah Okafor.

The Whites were held to a 0-0 draw by the Bees at Elland Road in another goalless game from Farke’s men.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin has hit a rough patch, but the reintroduction of his strike partnership with Nmecha gave Leeds fans some hope heading into the match.

The draw to Crystal Palace was the first time the strikers had started up top together in many weeks, but eyes should now start turning to Nmecha for his overall performances.

Okafor came off the bench against Brentford, but after the international break, it’ll surely be time for him to start.

This is why Daniel Farke needs to play Noah Okafor instead of Lukas Nmecha

Nmecha has had his moments of brilliance this season, and there’s no doubt he and Calvert-Lewin have both been great pick-ups by the 49ers.

However, the German was completely ineffective again this weekend, as Farke needs to either demand more from him or make the move to drop him.

Okafor has just returned from injury, which is most likely why he was only given 21 minutes off the bench, but the fact he was the direct swap for Nmecha says it all.

The Swiss international has bagged four goals in the Premier League this campaign, and though he didn’t make too much of an impact against the Bees, he’ll be more effective than Nmecha once back to full fitness.

The problem is that Nmecha and Calvert-Lewin are too like-for-like. Okafor offers the Whites something different, and something they’ve been lacking in recent games.

It’s great that Farke has him back for selection now, but it’s also clear what he has to do next.

Where does Wilfried Gnonto fit into things?

Wilfried Gnonto will want to play an important part from now until the end of the season, but as of right now, that looks unlikely.

Ironically, the Italian is also quite like-for-like with Okafor in that their stature and main skills are similar: dribbling, chance creation, shooting, and speed.

• Gnonto has started just four league games this season
• He managed 26 starts in the Championship last campaign

The formation that Farke currently deploys doesn’t help him either, as Okafor’s versatility also has him ahead of the winger in the Leeds boss’s pecking order.

Many twists and turns are yet to come, and Farke can’t neglect the quality that is within his squad; he just needs to be bold enough to make changes one more time.