Leeds United will head into Sunday’s trip to Sunderland waiting on Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anton Stach and Noah Okafor after Daniel Farke said all three remain doubtful for the match. The manager said each player picked up a knock in the meeting with Manchester United and would not be available if the game were today.
That makes this a live selection problem, not a routine injury update. Calvert-Lewin, who has a bruise on his foot after a late tackle and had still not joined team training when Farke spoke, is the name that stands out most because Leeds have only two days to see whether he can handle the pain and return. Farke said the same basic issue applies to Stach, whose foot problem is also painful, and to Okafor, who is dealing with adductor problems.
The scale of the doubt matters because Farke said the three players had missed many training sessions during the week and that late decisions will have to be made not just on availability, but on minutes. That is a narrower window than it sounds. If a player is only cleared late, he may be available in name only, with the club still forced to decide how much he can actually give.
There is still a small opening. Farke said the situation is not a muscle injury that demands extra caution, and that the club still has 48 hours to try to make the three available. But he also put Joe Rodon in the same bracket as a major doubt, which leaves Leeds with more uncertainty than they would want before a trip to Wearside. By contrast, Daniel James completed his first full training week and is in contention, offering one clear positive in a week otherwise dominated by fitness checks.
For Leeds, the final call may come down to pain tolerance, not just medical clearance. Calvert-Lewin is still the clearest test case: if he cannot train properly, the answer on Sunday may be less about whether he travels and more about whether he can do enough to matter once he gets there.
