Joe Gelhardt has to quit Leeds United to stop career sinking into oblivion
Leeds United forward Joe Gelhardt must leave the club this summer in order to prevent his fledgling career from stagnating.
Gelhardt made a grand total of 13 appearances across all competitions in the 2023/24 season, and has fallen down the pecking order during the past two campaigns at Elland Road.
The 22-year-old did score in one of his four starts, but that goal came against Shrewsbury in the EFL Cup on 9 August 2023 in just the second match of the season.
Featuring almost exclusively off the bench, if at all, since then, and with no clear path back into the fold, Gelhardt could leave Elland Road this summer, as other fringe players like Kristoffer Klaesson have done.
Summer transfer best move for Joe Gelhardt and Leeds United alike
With 18-year-old Archie Gray bursting onto the scene last season prior to a huge £40million move to Tottenham Hotspur, Gelhardt is not a 'young prospect' anymore, by any stretch.
At 22, Gelhardt is an experienced player when compared to the likes of Gray, and yet has managed just 54 first-team appearances in four years at Elland Road – two more than Gray did last season alone.
A half-season loan spell at Sunderland in early 2023 saw him make 18 league appearances and 20 overall, more than he managed in a white shirt in the campaigns either side of that temporary switch.
Therefore, it's quite clear that Gelhardt's next switch has to be a permanent one, allowing the forward to find a home where he'll play regularly, and also to free up attacking space in the Whites' squad.
Daniel Farke's side are having a second attempt at Championship promotion in the coming campaign, and with Gelhardt not at the forefront of the German's plans, his place in the side would be better served by a player who will make more of a difference to the club's promotion push.
In other Leeds United news, Rasmus Kristensen is close to reaching a verbal agreement to complete a move away from Elland Road.
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