Switzerland national team manager Murat Yakin has taken a new swipe at Noah Okafor as his rift with the Leeds United winger continues.

Okafor has not been named in the Swiss squad once again for the upcoming international break, meaning he will go a full 12 months without an appearance for his country.

Yakin insists that the door is not closed on the 25-year-old - but should Switzerland qualify, it seems unlikely that Okafor will feature as things stand. The coach is known to be rigid in his squad selections, something national team director Pierluigi Tami even admitted.

"Murat has decided in his head who will be a regular starter and who won't,” he said last month when asked about Okafor's persistent absences. “It's important to us that everyone in the national team is happy, regardless of what role the coach assigns them.”

Pressed on why Okafor was being continually left out, Tami replied: “That's actually a question for Murat Yakin. This [start to his Leeds career] is the right path...