Leeds United man sends goodbye message ahead of summer switch

Leeds United’s Joe Gelhardt will return from his loan spell with Sunderland following the end of their 2022/23 season in the Championship. The 21-year-old joined the Black Cats back in January to get some valuable minutes under his belt, having made mainly cameo appearances for his parent club this term.

Gelhardt played 20 matches during his time in Tyne and Wear and contributed to six goal-scoring moments, including scoring two important goals against Hull City and Middlesbrough respectively. The forward played every single league match since joining Sunderland and started all but two of them.

Gelhardt’s contract with Leeds will run until 2027, so it’s likely the club will be making plans for him to be further integrated into the first team.

As he prepares to make the move back to Elland Road, Gelhardt has penned a farewell message to Sunderland and expressed his gratitude for the opportunity.

“Thank you everyone I enjoyed every minute,” he wrote on Facebook with red and white hearts. He will rejoin the Leeds ranks this summer, but which league he will be playing in remains to be seen.

The Whites have just one match left to survive relegation but after their loss to West Ham, their chances are growing thinner. Leeds absolutely have to win against Spurs and they will need both Leicester and Everton to lose as well, but they’ll have to score a good few goals in order to beat the latter on goal difference.