Hugo Ekitike messages Leeds star despite wild Liverpool collapse at Elland Road
Hugo Eiktike has messaged Noah Okafor on social media despite the Liverpool meltdown that followed their draw against Leeds on Saturday.
Leeds fought back twice to draw 3-3 with Liverpool at Elland Road, for a huge point that has boosted the Whites’ chance of survival.
Ao Tanaka’s stoppage-time equaliser cancelled out what Liverpool thought was a late winner from Dominik Szoboszlai, with pressure mounting on Arne Slot.
Daniel Farke is fighting to keep his job, and Leeds‘ last two results may be enough to keep the German in post for the busy Christmas period.
However, the timing of Ekitike‘s message to Okafor has come rather out of the blue, given the bombshells that are dropping around him from the likes of Mo Salah.
Hugo Ekitike shows love to Noah Okafor even after Liverpool chaos
Lukas Nmecha has been in great form for the Whites in recent matches, but after suffering a hamstring strain, Farke opted for Okafor to lead the line alongside Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Okafor had a fairly quiet night for his standards, and his chances of playing won’t have been helped by the fact that Leeds started scoring just minutes after he left the field against the Reds.
- Okafor was subbed in the 65th minute when Leeds were losing 2-0
- He was replaced by Willy Gnonto
- Gnonto won the penalty that sparked Leeds’ fightback
The Swiss international took to Instagram after the game to share photos of himself and a picture of him and Ekitike embracing at full-time.
The Liverpool forward saw the post and replied with a love heart emoji after his two goals.
The message is perhaps unexpected, given the disappointing result from a Liverpool perspective, all while drama surrounds Salah and Slot’s reported fallout.
Daniel Farke has clear option to play over Okafor vs Brentford
The games don’t stop there for Leeds, with Brentford next up on 14 December.
The Whites are now just four points behind the Bees and could catch up to their relegation rivals if they were to pick up another important three points.
However, given Okafor’s disappointing performance, it would be no surprise to see Farke change things up in London.
Calvert-Lewin has three in three and will keep his place, but the striker may find himself playing next to Willy Gnonto for the Brentford clash.
When the Italian was subbed on against Liverpool, Farke tweaked things in attack and had Gnonto playing off the left. We could see this again, as it worked a treat for Farke versus the defending English champions.
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