Joe Gelhardt exit mooted for January as Leeds United woes continue
Joe Gelhardt could be set for an Elland Road exit in January as his woes at Leeds United look set to continue, according to William Jackson.
Writing on the LeedsLive website on Friday (13 October), the journalist said last season “did not go to plan” for the 21-year-old and the start of this campaign has gone the “same way” for him.
He added that with the Whites not being short of attacking options, the English forward might find himself looking at another loan move in January if he doesn’t receive more minutes.
“Last season did not go to plan for Gelhardt and unfortunately for the young forward, this one is going the same way,” said Jackson.
“Leeds aren’t short of attacking options at present and Gelhardt might well find himself looking at another January loan if he can’t find a way to get the minutes he needs in white.”
Inevitable
It seems pretty inevitable at this moment in time that Gelhardt will be heading out of Leeds on loan again in January due to his lack of opportunities.
The forward joined Sunderland on loan at the start of this year and went on to score three goals and lay on three assists in 20 matches as he helped them reach the Championship playoffs.
After the Whites suffered relegation down to the second tier last season, he would have been hoping to be more involved at Elland Road during this campaign under Daniel Farke.
That looked like potentially being the case as he played in each of the first six games, but he has since played just one minute off the bench and hasn’t made a single appearance in the past five matches.
With the signing of Joel Piroe, the form of Georginio Rutter and the return of Patrick Bamford from injury, Gelhardt’s chances are unlikely to improve any time soon.
He really can’t afford for his development to stall at his age, so the striker should be allowed to leave on loan in January to go and play some much-needed first-team football.
In other Leeds United news, Graham Smyth has made an “unusual” admission as he tipped a Whites player to break a league record.
