Journalist Adam Pope believes Joe Gelhardt may well have to head out on loan in January after his latest Leeds United omission.
It was perhaps a surprise to many Leeds fans on Sunday afternoon when the team news dropped and youngster Gelhardt wasn’t in the squad at all, despite Jesse Marsch confirming afterwards that he was indeed fit enough for selection.
Gelhardt, who was hailed as ‘special’ by Jamie Carragher, was often last season seen as the one who’d come off the bench, impact games and change them, as he did against Norwich City and Chelsea last campaign, but he now appears to have dropped down the pecking order rather quickly following the arrival of Wilfried Gnonto.
Therefore, Pope has claimed on the Don’t Go To Bed Just Yet podcast that the youngster could well be set for a temporary spell away from Leeds.
He said: “Where does it [Gnonto’s arrival] leave Gelhardt at the minute? Because he’s either [on the] bench – he obviously started at Brentford and it didn’t turn out great for him that day – but while others are scoring loads in the 21s like your [Mateo] Josephs, your Perkinses, Gnonto’s like the name at the moment…
Should Gelhardt go out on loan?
Yes!
No!
“Where’s it leaving him? If it continues like this, would it lead towards him maybe going out on loan in January or something? I’m sure they don’t want to lose him at any point.”
TIF Thoughts on Gelhardt’s Leeds situation…
It has been quite the fall from grace for Gelhardt after appearing to be the heir to Patrick Bamford and the man to lead the line for Leeds for years to come, but now he can’t even make the matchday squad.
The signing of Gnonto, who hadn’t played club football outside of Switzerland before joining Leeds may not have excited many people, but if he is now seen as more worthy of a spot on the bench than Gelhardt, it may well make people sit up and take notice of him.
As Pope suggested, a loan move could now be on the cards for Gelhardt as the last thing he and Leeds will want is for his development to stagnate at any point, and if Marsch can’t guarantee him sufficient minutes at first-team level, there doesn’t seem much point in keeping him around when the January window opens.