Joe Gelhardt came off the bench for Hull City on Saturday to kick off a second loan switch.
Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic is keen to deploy Joe Gelhardt in a more central role as the Leeds United loanee gets a chance to play in his most natural position.
Most of that attacking output came from out wide and while Gelhardt’s second debut against Coventry City on Saturday was as a right-winger, his best position has always been seen as in behind a more natural No.9. The stocky forward’s ability to squeeze out of tight spaces is a strength suited to playing centrally but circumstance has pushed him out of position in recent years.
Gelhardt was signed on loan by Sunderland in 2023 to play behind Ross Stewart but a serious injury to the latter saw Leeds’ loanee forced to lead the line alone. A spot on the right clearly worked well for the Liverpudlian last season but Jakirovic expects his new signing to thrive in a more central role over the next 10 months.
"I saw that he can play in a few positions,” he told Hull Live. “Mostly, he played like a right winger [last season] because of the Mohamed Belloumi and Liam Millar situation [two season-ending knee injuries], but normally, he's a second striker.
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“He's like a number 10 position, so I think he will be useful for us. He also has a good left foot, good from set pieces, a good shot from distance, creativity, ideas, and he's a young player, which is also important."
Joe Gelhardt transfer change of plan for Leeds United
Leeds initially wanted to seal a permanent exit for Gelhardt, who was not involved in first-team pre-season and instead built his fitness alongside Patrick Bamford with the Under-21s. The YEP reported earlier this summer club chiefs hoped to get a figure in the low millions for the youngster but his desire to re-join Hull made that difficult.
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Hull are currently under a three-window transfer fee restriction due to late payments, which they are appealing, but it means they cannot pay any permanent or loan fees for incoming signings. That of course made a permanent move to the MKM stadium impossible at this time but after enjoying regular football and finding form, Gelhardt wanted to return.
"He was my vision," the Hull boss added of Gelhardt. "I asked so many times about him because in our situation with the embargo and everything else, he wanted to come to us. We need such a player, and there's no adaptation time. The group likes him and he knows our environment as well, so this is a very, very good choice for us.”
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