The striker position appears to be a problem Leeds United boss Daniel Farke may need to address over the summer, with question marks hanging over the likes of Joel Piroe and Patrick Bamford heading into next season.
Joel Piroe did reach double figures during his first year at Elland Road, but also seemed to go missing in too many games for the promotion-chasers, while Patrick Bamford missed both the start and the end of the campaign due to injury.
Plenty wanted to see Mateo Joseph get more opportunities, while Georginio Rutter‘s flashes of brilliance showed how important it could be that Leeds keep him this summer.
But there is potentially another option in the ranks who is arguably facing a massive pre-season after a couple of frustrating years at Leeds.
Leeds youngster may be facing make or break pre-season
Joe Gelhardt was an unused substitute in 20 league games last season, while he was on the pitch for less than 200 minutes across his 10 appearances before the play-offs.
Farke is not the first Leeds manager to struggle to find a way to fit Gelhardt in his plans, and it is almost a surprise that he did not leave the Whites in some capacity last season.
With that, many may perhaps be expecting Gelhardt to leave in the coming weeks, with Sam Greenwood and Darko Gyabi already being loaned out. So it really feels like this could be a huge pre-season for Gelhardt if he is going to make it at Leeds.
Joe Gelhardt won’t want to spend another year on sidelines
Gelhardt definitely has the talent to make an impact as Farke’s men look to get promoted at the second attempt. Few will forget the £1 million man’s stunning assist for Pascal Struijk in the penultimate game of the 2021/22 season. And his performance in the first-half when leading the line at Tottenham earlier that season was so impressive.
The 22-year-old is surely not going to be willing to spend another season on the periphery of the Leeds squad, particularly when he was not getting chances as Piroe and Bamford struggled. So if nothing changes over the coming weeks, he will surely push for a move away before the window shuts.
But all it may take is one or two inspired performances in pre-season for Gelhardt to send a real message to Farke. It is easy to forget now that Leeds did not intend to sign Sam Byram when they invited him to train with the club last summer.
Byram won a lot of admirers with his form in pre-season, so there is scope for someone to make a real statement.
And when it comes to natural talent, few actually seem to have quite as much as Gelhardt.
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