Joe Gelhardt

Not to be confused with American baseball player Joe Gerhardt.

Joe Gelhardt

Gelhardt with Leeds United
Personal information
Full name	Joseph Paul Gelhardt [1]
Date of birth	(2002-05-04) 4 May 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth	Liverpool, England
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) [2]
Position(s)	Attacking Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Leeds United
Number	30
Youth career
2013–2018	Wigan Athletic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2018–2020	Wigan Athletic	19	(1)
2020–	Leeds United	47	(2)
2023	→ Sunderland (loan)	18	(3)
International career‡
2018	England U16	6	(3)
2018–2019	England U17	15	(12)
2019–2020	England U18	6	(4)
2021	England U20	1	(2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:51, 8 November 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16 October 2019 (UTC)

Joseph Paul Gelhardt (born 4 May 2002) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for EFL Championship club Leeds United.

Club career

Wigan Athletic

Born in Liverpool, Gelhardt grew up in Netherton, Merseyside, where he attended Chesterfield High School. ^[3] He joined Wigan Athletic at the age of ten in 2013, progressing through the youth teams before being offered a scholarship deal in 2017. ^[4] He made his professional debut for Wigan Athletic on 14 August 2018, appearing as a substitute against Rotherham United in the first round of the EFL Cup. ^[5]

On 24 August 2018, he signed his first professional contract with the club. ^[5] He made his League debut on 27 April 2019, appearing as a half-time substitute against Birmingham City. On 14 September 2019, he scored his first senior goal for the club in a 2–2 draw against Hull City. ^[6]

Gelhardt made 19 appearances in all competitions with 18 coming in the EFL Championship during the 2019–20 season, as Wigan were relegated from the Championship after a 12-point penalty saw them drop into the relegation places. ^{[7] [8]}

Leeds United

On 10 August 2020, Gelhardt signed a four-year contract with Premier League club Leeds United. ^[8] He made his senior debut for Leeds United on 21 September 2021 as a second-half substitute for Mateusz Klich in the EFL Cup third round match against EFL Championship side Fulham. The match ended 0–0 with Leeds winning 6–5 on penalties, Gelhardt scoring the seventh of Leeds' eight penalties. ^[9] Gelhardt made his Premier League debut for Leeds on 16 October as a second-half substitute in the 1–0 defeat to Southampton. ^[10] On 11 December 2021, Gelhardt scored his first goal for Leeds in a 2–3 away league defeat to rivals Chelsea ^[11] and he netted his second on 13 March 2022: a dramatic added-time 2–1 winner at Elland Road against Norwich City. ^[12]

In the 2022–23 season, Gelhardt's 10 appearances through the end of October were mostly limited to late substitutions, mostly for Sinisterra and Rodrigo, ^[13] allowing little time for him to impress himself on the direction of the game.

Loan to Sunderland

On 27 January 2023, Gelhardt joined Championship play-off pushing side Sunderland on loan until the end of the 2022–23 season. ^[14] He scored his first goal for Sunderland on 21 February 2023 in a 2–1 defeat to Rotherham United. ^[15]

Return to Leeds

Under new manager Daniel Farke, Gerhardt did not feature prominently in the 2023–24 season, and even less frequently during the first three months of the 2024–25 season, making only two league appearances as a late substitute.

International career

Gelhardt scored for the England under-16 team in a 3–3 draw against Brazil at the 2018 Montaigu Tournament. ^[16]

In September 2018, Gelhardt scored twice for the England under-17 team against Norway and also came off the bench to score against Belgium. ^[17] The following month saw him score against the United States and twice in a game against Russia. ^{[18] [19]} In March 2019, Gelhardt scored in a 3–2 win against Denmark that confirmed qualification for the 2019 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. ^[20] In April 2019, Gelhardt was included in the England U17 squad for the 2019 UEFA European Under-17 Championships and scored in a 3–1 victory over Sweden under-17s as the Young Lions bowed out of the competition at the group stage. ^{[21] [22]}

Gelhardt made his U18 debut as a 79th-minute substitute during the 3–2 win over Australia at Hinckley Leicester Road on 6 September 2019. ^[23] On 2 October 2020, Gelhardt was named in the England U19 squad. ^[24]

On 6 September 2021, Gelhardt made his debut for the England U20s scoring a brace during a 6–1 victory over Romania U20s at St. George's Park. ^[25]

Gelhardt received his first call up to the England U21s on 4 October 2021, as an injury replacement for Noni Madueke. ^[26]

Style of play

Gelhardt is left footed and plays mainly as a striker; he can also play as a second striker, wide forward or as an attacking midfielder. ^[27] He is known for his dribbling, power and build-up play; his style has been compared to that of Wayne Rooney. ^{[28] [29]}

Personal life

Gelhardt supported Liverpool growing up. ^[30]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 1 October 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		EFL Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Wigan Athletic	2018–19 [31]	Championship	1	0	0	0	1	0	—		2	0
	2019–20 [32]	Championship	18	1	1	0	0	0	—		19	1
	Total		19	1	1	0	1	0	0	0	21	1
Leeds United U21	2020–21 [33]	—			—		—		1 [a]	0	1	0
	2021–22 [34]	—			—		—		1 [a]	0	1	0
	2022–23 [13]	—			—		—		2 [a]	2	2	2
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	4	2	4	2
Leeds United	2020–21 [33]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2021–22 [34]	Premier League	20	2	0	0	2	0	—		22	2
	2022–23 [13]	Premier League	15	0	2	0	2	0	—		19	0
	2023–24 [35]	Championship	10	0	1	0	2	1	—		13	1
	2024–25 [36]	Championship	2	0	0	0	1	0	—		3	0
	Total		47	2	3	0	7	1	—		57	3
Sunderland (loan)	2022–23 [13]	Championship	18	3	—		—		2 [b]	0	20	3
Career total			77	6	3	0	7	1	6	2	92	9

1. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
2. Appearances in Championship play-offs

References

1. "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2019" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
2. "Joe Gelhardt". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
3. Johnson, Tim (17 August 2016). "Chesterfield High pupil Joe caps off magnificent season with Three Lions call-up". Visiter. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
4. "10 Youngsters Offered Scholarships For Next Season". Wigan Athletic. 21 December 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
5. "Joe Gelhardt commits long-term future to Wigan Athletic". Wigan Athletic. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
6. "Teenager Gelhardt earns Wigan point at Hull". BBC Sport. 14 September 2019. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
7. "Joe Gelhardt: Leeds United in advanced talks over Wigan Athletic striker". BBC Sport. 9 August 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
8. Urquhart, Joe (10 August 2020). "Leeds land signature of highly-rated Wigan youngster on a four-year deal". Yorkshire Evening Post . Retrieved 10 August 2020.
9. "Leeds squeeze past Fulham on penalties". BBC Sport.
10. "Broja says Saints winner a 'dream come true'". BBC Sport.
11. Poole, Harry (11 December 2021). "Chelsea 3-2 Leeds United: Stoppage-time Jorginho penalty earns Blues dramatic victory". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
12. Taylor, Louise (13 March 2022). "Gelhardt gives Marsch first Leeds win in dramatic finale against Norwich". The Guardian . Retrieved 13 March 2022.
13. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 October 2022.
14. "Gelhardt joins from Leeds United". www.safc.com. 27 January 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
15. "Rotherham 2-1 Sunderland". BBC. 21 February 2023. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
16. "Gelhardt scores twice as England finish third in Montaigu Tournament". Wigan Athletic. 5 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
17. "Wigan Athletic duo help England U17 to win the 2018 Syrenka Cup in Poland". Wigan Athletic. 11 September 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
18. "Young Lions stage second-half comeback in Chester to beat USA in tournament opener". The Football Association. 12 October 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
19. "Joseph Gelhardt hits brace as England U17s beat Russia in Shrewsbury". The Football Association. 14 October 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
20. "Drama in Denmark as young Lions' late winner seals top spot in Euro qualifying". The Football Association. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
21. "Young Lions squad head for UEFA U17 EURO Finals in the Republic of Ireland this month". The Football Association. 2 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
22. "YOUNG LIONS WIN FINAL GROUP GAME OF U17 EUROS, BUT MISS OUT ON A QUARTER FINAL SPOT". The Football Association. 9 May 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
23. "ALEX MIGHTEN BLASTS HAT-TRICK TO FIRE ENGLAND U18S TO VICTORY OVER AUSTRALIA". The Football Association. 6 September 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
24. "Leeds United trio selected for England under-19s squad amidst raft of international calls". Yorkshire Evening Post. 2 October 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
25. Veevers, Nicholas (6 September 2021). "Six at SGP for MU20s". EnglandFootball.com. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
26. "England men's under-21s squad updates - October". EnglandFootball.com. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
27. "Who is Joe Gelhardt? The Wigan striker that Leeds want to sign ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea". BBC Sport. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
28. "Wigan turn to young forward dubbed 'new Wayne Rooney' against Middlesbrough". Teesside Live. 21 July 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
29. "Everton interested in signing Wigan striker Joe Gelhardt dubbed 'next Wayne Rooney'". Talksport. 9 February 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
30. Spencer, Phil (23 October 2021). "Who is Joe Gelhardt? The Leeds United starlet who admired Liverpool's Fernando Torres, has been compared to Wayne Rooney and won a penalty against Wolves". Talksport . Retrieved 21 November 2021.
31. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
32. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
33. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
34. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
35. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
36. "Games played by Joe Gelhardt in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 8 November 2024.