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Sunderland skipper Granit Xhaka has revealed that Leeds United star Noah Okafor talked to him before he gave an interview where he slammed the Switzerland national team and urged him to consider why he is not being picked.
Leeds paid a fee in the region of €20m to sign the 25-year-old winger from AC Milan and it has been suggested that the club hierarchy are very happy with the investment they made in Okafor.
The Whites are going through a bad patch of form, but Okafor has garnered praise and one former Leeds star feels he is horrible for opposition defenders to come up against.
But ahead of the international break, he became the talk of the town for his interview with a media outlet where he accused national team boss Murat Yakin and the Swiss FA of cutting off communication with him.
Xhaka revealed that he spoke with Okafor before his interview and added that both of them discussed the national team, but he stressed that he does not have in-depth knowledge of the situation of the Leeds star.
The Swiss international pointed out that Okafor had opportunities to prove himself in the previous European Championship and the World Cup and advised the Leeds star to be realistic and think about what he can do to get back into the squad.
“I had a telephone conversation with Noah before his interview”, Xhaka told Swiss daily Blick.
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Granit Xhaka | Sunderland |
| Dan Ndoye | Nottingham Forest |
“Of course, we also discussed the national team.
“It is difficult for me to comment on this topic without knowing all the details.
“He had opportunities at the European Championships and World Cup.
“For my part, I would take a realistic look at the situation: why am I not succeeding? Why am I not part of the squad?”
Swiss national team director Pierluigi Tami thinks that Okafor does not have to apologise for his comments, but the Leeds star could have picked up the phone and called national team boss Murat Yakin before giving an interview to the media.
Okafor has featured a total of 24 times for the national team and Leeds may feel it is no bad thing him being out of favour at the moment as they bid to have him fresh and injury free to help their push for survival in the Premier League.
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