Rarely-seen Leo Hjelde surely set for Leeds United January exit amid Daniel Farke snub
Leo Hjelde is surely set to leave Leeds United in January after being snubbed by Daniel Farke this season.
Writing on the Express website on Monday (27 November), journalist Richard Garnett said another loan move “beckons” for the 20-year-old defender after spending the second half of last season with Rotherham United.
He added that a permanent move away from Elland Road is a “likely outcome” next summer for the Norway U-21 international, who has featured just three times under the Whites boss during this campaign.
The left-back would have been hoping to be more involved this season on the back of his solid loan spell with Rotherham, where he featured 13 times as he helped the club fight off relegation from the Championship.
But his exploits in South Yorkshire haven’t been enough for Farke to hand him many opportunities as he hasn’t been named in a single Leeds squad since he was an unused substitute in the 0-0 draw with Sheffield Wednesday on 2 September.
That is largely down to the form of Sam Byram after the Whites academy product returned to the club following his release from Norwich City last season.
Jamie Shackleton operated as a reliable backup to him in the first couple of months of the campaign before Junior Firpo returned to make his first start in the 1-1 draw against Rotherham on Friday (24 November).
That means Hjelde has dropped to fourth choice in the pecking order at left-back, so it’s almost impossible to see how he could push himself back into the reckoning this season.
A loan spell must surely be on the cards in January as the defender will be desperate to go out and earn some more regular first-team football.
Perhaps a potential option could be to join former Whites U-21 manager Michael Skubala at Lincoln City after he made the switch to the League One side on 13 November.
It wouldn’t come as much of a surprise to see the 41-year-old return to his former club to hand some of the talented academy products first-team experience when the January window comes around.
A temporary switch away from West Yorkshire would provide Hjelde with the opportunity to show Farke why he should be more involved or put himself in the shop window for a permanent move away at the end of the season.
In other Leeds United news, a player looks “inevitable” to head out of Elland Road on loan in January.