Leeds United 1, Tottenham Hotspur 0 at Elland Road — Okafor came on in the 77th minute, scored the only goal in the 79th, and Leeds jumped Tottenham into eighth.
Leeds United beat Tottenham Hotspur 1–0 at Elland Road in Premier League Matchday 10 on Saturday, November 7, 2026 — goalless for 78 minutes, settled by a substitute who had barely been on the pitch.
The first half's defining moment was not a chance but a check. Jayden Bogle caught Mathys Tel with a tackle before half-time; VAR checked a possible red card and the on-field call of no dismissal stood — Reuters reported Bogle appeared fortunate to escape, and Tel eventually had to be substituted because of the challenge. The Premier League Match Centre confirmed the referee's no-red-card call was checked and confirmed by VAR. Tottenham also survived a first-half handball check on Mateus Fernandes inside his own area, with no penalty given.
Leeds took the game away after the break. Reuters reported the hosts gained the momentum and carved out several good chances, and on 77 minutes Daniel Farke made his double change: Harry Wilson on for Ao Tanaka, Noah Okafor on for Lukas Nmecha.
Ninety-seven seconds later, per Reuters, it was decided. Spurs failed to deal with a long throw into the box, the ball was knocked into Okafor's path, and he drove a low finish past Antonin Kinsky in the 79th minute — the only goal of the match. The Times' live coverage had the throw-in flicked on to Wilson, who picked out Okafor, and The Sun's report had the scorer getting past Bentancur and beating Kinsky at the near post with a low shot from the edge of the area. Okafor wheeled off in celebration, took his shirt off, and was booked a minute later.
Tottenham's closest answer came late, Jan Paul van Hecke's header palmed wide by James Trafford, and Leeds saw it out. Flashscore named Trafford its man of the match.
The result ends Leeds' five-match winless Premier League run (three draws, two defeats, per Flashscore) and Tottenham's three-game winning streak. Leeds move above Tottenham into eighth place with 14 points; Tottenham have 12.
97 Seconds That Turned the Afternoon
The game ran on a knife edge long before the goal. Van de Ven was booked after 14 minutes and Sean Longstaff followed him into referee John Brooks' book on 21 minutes, and the Tel incident closed the half: Mathys Tel went down under Bogle's challenge on 35 minutes, returned briefly, went down again on 42 minutes and was replaced by Solanke a minute later. Leeds made the first change of the second half, Bard replacing Gudmundsson at the break, and Tottenham answered with a triple change on 65 minutes — Gallagher for Porro, who had been booked on 51 minutes, Kulusevski for Marmoush and Rodrigo Bentancur for Mateus Fernandes.
None of it moved the score. Farke's double change on 77 minutes did, in 97 seconds. Tottenham's last throw was Williams-Barnet for Kudus on 83 minutes, and Leeds closed the game out with fresh legs in stoppage time, Gruev for Longstaff and Rodon for Bogle on 90+3 minutes. Okafor's shirt-off booking on 80 minutes and a late yellow card for Tonali on 88 minutes completed the card count. For Tottenham, per the club's own match report, it was a first defeat in five Premier League games; their next fixture is Ipswich Town at home on Saturday, November 21.
Leeds lined up in a 3-5-2: James Trafford in goal; Justin, Elvedi and Muharemovic across the back; Jayden Bogle, captain Ampadu, Sean Longstaff, Ao Tanaka and Gudmundsson through midfield; and Lukas Nmecha alongside Calvert-Lewin up front — the side Farke reshaped with the Bard, Wilson and Okafor changes that decided the match.
Previously Staff’s read: Okafor's whole afternoon fits inside three minutes: on at 77, the winner at 79, booked at 80 for the celebration. It is the kind of cameo a season turns on. A sixth straight match without a win would have left Leeds looking down; instead they take momentum into the international break for the first time in weeks. Tottenham leave Elland Road beaten not by a run of play they failed to live with but by one long throw they failed to clear and one substitute they had barely had time to mark. The 12:30 kickoff at Elland Road was goalless for 78 minutes and even for long stretches — and then, in 97 seconds, it was not.
Sources · 6 sources
- Reuters — Okafor secures Leeds win at home to Tottenham — match report (November 7, 2026)
- Sky Sports — Leeds vs Spurs live match updates, 07.11.2026 (Elland Road)
- Flashscore — Late winner sees Tottenham's resurgence come grinding to a halt in Leeds
- The Sun — Leeds 1 Tottenham 0: Daniel Farke's double sub pays off in an instant after two controversial VAR decisions
- Sportradar — Play-by-play timeline for Leeds United vs Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League Matchday 10 (November 7, 2026) — substitutions, bookings and the 79th-minute goal
- Tottenham Hotspur — Official match report — "Winning run ended at Leeds" (line-ups, match data, November 7, 2026)
Every minute from Elland Road — the full box score, play-by-play and Okafor's winner — is in the Game Center for Leeds United vs Tottenham Hotspur, and the full Premier League slate is on the Premier League hub.
