Joe Gelhardt hails Leeds United fans after 1-1 draw v Wolves
By Josh Heycock
Joe Gelhardt has praised the Leeds United fanbase after his dazzling cameo in the 1-1 draw against Wolves at Elland Road on Saturday.
The 19-year-old came on off the bench and won his side a 95th-minute penalty, which was converted by Rodrigo to snatch a point in the dying embers of the game after Hwang Hee-Chan put the visitors in front in the first half.
The striker had LS11 on their feet from the moment he came on, his marauding runs with the ball and relentless energy without it earned his team a point, although the young player has put their success down to the Leeds support.
As quoted by The Yorkshire Evening Post after the game, Gelhardt said, “It was great to come on and make my debut in front of the home fans, the noise was crazy!
“I sort of went numb when I heard the noise (from the crowd). They’re like the 12th man out there and you can really tell.”
Gelhardt’s dancing run to win the penalty was the highlight of his performance, however he nearly levelled the scoreline himself, forcing a save from Wolves keeper Jose Sa.
“It was a great save. I thought if I just hit this with power it would have a good chance of going in,” he said.
A future star?
Joining from Wigan in the summer of 2020, Gelhardt has been making quite the racket in Leeds’ very successful Under-23s side, with Leeds fans calling for the youngster to make his debut for a while now.
He earnt a brief appearance against Southampton last weekend, however failed to make an immediate impact in a 1-0 loss where Bielsa’s men were off-colour.
However, coming on off the bench this week was a different story.
Gelhardt looked sharp from the moment he came on, his ability to travel at top speed with the ball glued to his foot was breathtaking and he looked almost impossible to tackle.
His energy off the ball was contagious as he pressed the Wolves back four relentlessly dragging his team up the pitch from midfield, in a time where an injection of hope is needed at Elland Road, a young, hungry player could be exactly what they need to start climbing the table again.
Gelhardt took the meaning of ‘impact sub’ to new levels in LS11 last night and with Leeds’ treatment room looking more crowded than ever, a start for the 19-year-old could be on the horizon.
In other Leeds United news, Phil Hay says this midfielder is likely to be at the end of the line at Elland Road.