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Swansea are looking to move in for Joe Gelhardt from Leeds on loan this month with the 20-year-old battling for minutes with Jesse Marsch after breaking through last season.
- Joe Gelhardt impressed for Leeds United last season in his first season in the top flight
- He has struggled to start this season and has been ineffective for Leeds.
- Swansea City of the Championship is interested in bringing him on loan
Swansea City are keen to sign Leeds United striker Joe Gelhardt amid the Liverpool-born 20-year-old’s struggles with the Premier League club this season.
Gelhardt impressed in his first campaign in the top flight last year, scoring a series of crucial goals and putting in a number of impressive displays as Leeds narrowly avoided relegation.
However, he has struggled to start this season, with his appearances largely limited to cameos off the bench. He has so far only registered one assist in his 14 Premier League appearances to date.
Joe Gelhardt is the subject of interest for Swansea City, as the striker has struggled for minutes this season.
Swansea are now keen to take the striker on loan, and Leeds are keen to keep developing him after seeing flashes of brilliance from him last term.
The forward sits in the bottom half of minutes played for Leeds this season, having appeared for just a total of 397 in all competitions despite playing in 17 games. Patrick Bamford, who has only appeared in 10 games, has played a total of 429 minutes.
Gelhardt has fallen victim to Rodrigo enjoying perhaps his best season in a Leeds shirt to date, with the Spaniard topping their goalscoring charts with 11 in all competitions, including 10 in the Premier League.
After making his way last season, it was expected that he would continue, but he has not.
Asked on Sunday about the possibility of Gelhardt going on loan this month after a largely ineffective performance against a determined Cardiff City side, Marsch replied: “I don’t want to discuss that. We really like Joffy.
He added: ‘When they are so compact, it is not easy for him to find a game. The entire first half is hard to pin down one thing.
“He just wasn’t in sync, he wasn’t aggressive enough. Not the full understanding of what this game was going to require. That is why the submarines were turned on and caused an impact.
Jesse Marsch said they “like” Gelhardt and refused to be swayed by speculation about his future.