It was a case of will he, won’t he, where is he when it comes to the transfer wranglings between Wigan and Leeds United over teen sensation Joe Gelhardt. It was a deal finalised two weeks ago, the 18-year-old signing on the dotted line as a White. Noise on Twitter said that the deal was worth £1m with add-ons.
✍️ #LUFC are delighted to announce the signing of Joe Gelhardt from Wigan Athletic on a four-year deal
— Leeds United (@LUFC) August 10, 2020
All that Liverpool-born Gelhardt has known is Wigan, having been a Latic since being a youngster. There are anecdotal tales of him smashing five past Manchester United as well as scoring 10 in a game and having to be hauled off in case any scouts were ready to pull the trigger with their bosses.
The teen starlet has bounced through the age groups at the DW Stadium and hit the first-team last season. Since the leap forward to the first-team set-up, Gelhardt made 19 appearances in last season’s Sky Bet Championship campaign, scoring 1 goal – a Cruyff turn and neat finish against Hull City. He is seen as a player with potential that is ripe for development.
The Wigan Today website revealed other particulars of the deal at the time. They stated that there is a sell-on clause in there that lasts the whole length of the four-year initial deal. Wigan Today go into specific and say this “means Latics will get 20 per cent if Leeds decide to sell him during that timeframe.”
The Sun’s Alan Nixon adds a little more spice to this deal with the following on Twitter:
Leeds. Gelhardt deal bigger than initial payment. Could rise to 2.5m with a sell-on slice to Wigan too.
— Alan Nixon (@reluctantnicko) August 23, 2020
The added potential for cash will be welcomed by Wigan, as an entity, their dealings being guided by administrators at the moment.
