Former Leeds United midfielder David Prutton probably summed it up best when asked about Joe Gelhardt’s stuttering development at Elland Road back in 2023.
Once the rising star of Leeds and the talk of West Yorkshire, Gelhardt was struggling to build on that breakout season under Jesse Marsch with a loan spell at Sunderland yielding only three goals in 18 Championship appearances.
Two years on, with Joe Gelhardt’s future more uncertain than ever, Prutton’s warnings feel all the more precient.
The former Wigan Athletic prospect, he said, was under pressure to translate ‘that potential into positive impacts on the pitch’.
Gelhardt’s versatility was arguably becoming more of a curse than a gift. Because while the adaptable frontman is capable of starting as a striker, as a number ten, or wide on the right or left, Prutton argued that he would be better off nailing down one position and perfecting it.
That is one of the challenges now facing Gelhardt as he embarks on another loan deal, this time at Hull.
The Leeds-owned youngster impressed on his Hull City debut in Saturday’s 1-0 win at Millwall. He featured as a wide attacker at The Den, and it appears that is the role Tigers boss Ruben Selles appears keen to keep him in.
He also scored a ridiculous goal against Queens Park Rangers.
Ruben Selles thinks he’s worked out Leeds United loanee Joe Gelhardt
Whether Selles has finally cracked the Gelhardt code, only time will tell.
But after years being shifted from one role to another, Hull’s newly-appointed head coach could finally answer Prutton’s prayers by cementing Gelhardt not as a number nine or a number ten but as an inverted winger drifting in from the right onto his stronger left boot.
“I think for us, it can be one of our two winger positions, or he can occasionally be in the striker position; he can play in the three positions in front,” Selles begins before delving a little deeper into his plans for Gelhardt.
“I see him more playing coming from the side to the centre because his physical attributes in terms of the intensity and the pressure are really good. I see him more [in a] dynamic winger position, but he also can play in the centre.”
Gelhardt could stay at Hull if Ruben Selles can secure survival
Ruben Selles is open to keeping Gelhardt at Hull City permanently, should he build on a lively start at the Humberside outfit. His Leeds contract expires in the summer of 2027, though Daniel Farke can co may be willing to consider offers as his 23rd birthday approaches.
Mateo Joseph has already moved ahead of Gelhardt in Leeds’ pecking order.
“For the moment, it’s a player that we want, and we believe he can be really good for us,” Selles adds.
“Obviously, if we do things properly and we end up where we want to end up [staying in the Championship], and he ends up playing the minutes that we want him to play and doing the things that we want him to do, I think it will definitely be something that we need to evaluate (in the summer).
“That’s when you get players on loan. You need to get the quality up and you need to get players that are ready for the challenge.
“And I think he’s one of those players.”
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