Okafor’s late strike hands Leeds victory over Tottenham at Elland Road
Noah Okafor’s late goal gave Leeds a victory over Tottenham at Elland Road in a Premier League match on 7 November 2026, ending Spurs’ bid for a fourth successive league win for the first time in four years. The goal arrived with nine minutes remaining and proved decisive as Leeds secured their first win in six Premier League games.
Leeds had begun the season with eight points from their first four matches but had begun to stutter, prompting manager Daniel Farke to revisit tactical options; he reverted to a 3-5-2 system that many believed had saved his job when he first used it almost a year ago against Manchester City. Tottenham arrived on a run of domestic form that made a fourth straight league victory a real target, meaning the match carried significance for both sides.
The first half produced few clear-cut openings as defences dominated; James Trafford was called into action to deny efforts from Omar Marmoush and Mathys Tel. The half’s principal talking point came when Jayden Bogle’s tackle on Tel caught the winger’s achilles, was initially penalised, and prompted a lengthy VAR review; unlike a week earlier when Jean-Philippe Mateta was sent off for a similar challenge, no further action followed and Tel, after attempting to continue, was replaced by Dominic Solanke.
Farke adjusted at half-time by switching to a back four and advancing Bogle, which almost brought an immediate reward: Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s header from a corner was blocked on the line by Solanke, Nico Elvedi then headed wide, and Calvert-Lewin later set up Ao Tanaka, whose effort from six yards flew over. That sequence briefly opened the contest after a fairly subdued opening 45 minutes.
As the hour approached the momentum favoured Leeds and Roberto De Zerbi responded with a triple substitution for Tottenham; one of the introducings, Conor Gallagher, shot narrowly wide with Trafford appearing beaten. Leeds answered with strong contributions from Bogle and substitute Melvin Bard, whose break led to a pinpoint cross that found Sean Longstaff unmarked, only for Antonin Kinsky to produce a reactionary save to keep the game level.
Farke then altered his shape again, bringing on Harry Wilson and Okafor to support Calvert-Lewin, and within two minutes the substitutes combined as Okafor rifled home past Kinsky to send Elland Road into uproar. The strike proved to be the match-winner and the culmination of Leeds’ second-half pressure.
There were late opportunities for Tottenham to salvage a point, notably when Jan Paul van Hecke produced a smart save from Trafford, but Leeds held on to secure the win and, by doing so, get their season firmly back on track.