Credit: Tung Manh Phan

Richie Mills

Sat 18 April 2026 21:40, UK

Noah Okafor is inching closer to a bit of Premier League history for a Swiss player after his goalscoring display for Leeds United against Wolves.

Leeds forked out around £18million to sign winger Okafor from AC Milan last summer and as the season progresses, that deal is increasingly looking like a masterstroke.

The Swiss international came with a reputation of being inconsistent and injury-prone, alongside having a healthy dose of pedigree.

And since returning from a hamstring injury last month, Okafor is proving to be a difference-maker for Leeds as they try to stay in the Premier League.

Following Leeds’ 3-0 win over Wolves at Elland Road on Saturday, it has become clear that they need to keep him fit and manage his minutes with great care.

Noah Okafor stars again for Leeds

Okafor became an overnight Leeds legend on Monday when he scored both goals in Leeds’ 2-1 win over Manchester United – their first league victory at Old Trafford since 1981.

His new Leeds song is doing the rounds amongst the fanbase, with Okafor also grabbing an assist in their FA Cup quarter-final win over West Ham.

And against Wolves, he scored a goal and bagged an assist as Leeds went eight points clear of the relegation zone.

According to LUFC Data, the 25-year-old won three duels, created four chances, was 18/23 on successful passes, made four ball recoveries, and ran 7.20km.

His goal also took his Premier League tally to seven, meaning he is not far off becoming the most prolific Swiss player in a single season in this division, behind former Liverpool and Stoke City man Xherdan Shaqiri.

Okafor played 67 minutes against Wolves before making way for Wilfried Gnonto. That means the winger has completed the full 90 just once this season for Leeds in the league.

It is clear that Okafor doesn’t have a 90-minute game in him right now. Therefore, Leeds need to carefully manage his minutes for the remainder of this season.

Playing him against Bournemouth on Wednesday could be a risk as next Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea looms large. Leeds may be safe but they cannot take risks with Okafor, who is worth his weight in gold right now.

Leeds take giant step towards safety

After beating Man United in their own backyard, some Leeds fans feared they would crumble under the pressure of facing Wolves at home, in a game where they were heavy favourites.

However, to the delight of many, Leeds were excellent in the opening 25 minutes as James Justin and Okafor put Wolves to the sword.

They were unconvincing for long periods after that but thankfully for the home faithful, Dominic Calvert-Lewin‘s late penalty secured Leeds a vital 3-0 win over Wolves.

This was the first time all season they had secured back-to-back league wins and they still have games to come against lowly Burnley, Tottenham, and West Ham.

If they win just one more of these, Leeds are likely to be playing Premier League football next term.