Journalist Dean Jones believes Leeds United could keep young attacker Joe Gelhardt beyond the January transfer window despite the striker’s limited game-time this season.
There were high hopes for Gelhardt at Elland Road when he first broke through the ranks under legendary coach Marcelo Bielsa, drawing comparisons to Birmingham City boss Wayne Rooney as well.
At the beginning of the 2022/23 campaign, Gelhardt put pen to paper on a new contract, keeping him at the club until 2027 at the earliest, before being sent out on loan last January to Championship outfit Sunderland.
At the Stadium of Light, the former Wigan Athletic starlet made 20 appearances as the Black Cats earned a spot in the playoffs, although eventually lost in the semi-final to Luton Town. Gelhardt scored three times during his stint in the Northeast.
Nevertheless, with Leeds United being relegated from the Premier League, it looked as though Gelhardt would start seeing more minutes at the Yorkshire club under new head coach Daniel Farke.
Unfortunately, for Gelhardt, this hasn’t quite panned out how he’d have hoped, with the 21-year-old featuring just five times in the Championship, having been on the pitch for merely 164 minutes in total.
Furthermore, Gelhardt hasn’t scored once in the league and has even been linked with a £6 million move away from the club. Despite rumoured interest ahead of January from the likes of Hull City, journalist Dean Jones has claimed that Gelhardt could stay with Leeds for the remainder of the season.
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones said:
“Obviously, he’s not seeing much game time, but the information up to now has been that he will probably remain [past] January and I think that will be reviewed properly at the end of the season if that’s the the case.
“The reason he might stay in January is that the Championship is tough. Now we can all see that he’s obviously not playing, but in the second half of the season, in that league with the number of games and how they can quickly pile up, especially if any postponements come along, it can really test a squad.
“I think that Leeds will be wary of that and will want to know that they’ve got the depth to come in. So he still has the capability of doing a job if called upon and I think they’ll be in two minds about letting him go.”
Writer’s View
Leeds United have a huge decision to make regarding the future of Gelhardt. The Englishman is not getting any younger and the Peacocks risk stagnating Gelhardt’s career more than it already has.
The best solution for all parties would be for Leeds to sanction Gelhardt’s sale, but Farke seems unwilling to in case an injury occurs to the likes of Joel Piroe or Georginio Rutter.
Deputy Head of Writing
