Reading took an early lead with a goal of real quality in a dominant opening spell which had the Wigan defence in complete disarray. On seven minutes Mbengue curled a teasing cross to the far post which Ehibhatiomhan controlled with superb first touch and picked out Savage who had held his run perfectly to drift into space in front of goal and calmy stroke the ball into bottom corner. Royals were rampant only prevented from racing into an early unassailable lead by some desperate defending, good goalkeeping and wayward finishing
Wayne Rooney and Leeds United forward Joe Gelhardt have drawn plenty of comparisons previously due to their stature and direct dribbling ability, and the England icon could be the man to get his career back on track with Plymouth Argyle.
Gelhardt is one of a number of fringe players who could be in line for an exit from Leeds this summer, but the 22-year-old remains a player with plenty of untapped potential, having shown excellent early signs at the start of his Wigan Athletic career.
The Whites were then quick to pounce four years ago to make Gelhardt theirs, with a reported £1.1 million fee enough to lure him from the cash-strapped Latics that summer after being promoted under Marcelo Bielsa.
Having failed to make a single appearance in his first year at the club and instead tearing up the U-23 and U-21 teams, Gelhardt went on to feature 20 times in the following Premier League campaign, and netted his first goal for the club in memorable style by bagging the equaliser in a 3-2 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in December 2021.
However, his magnum opus so far in a Leeds shirt came at Elland Road, where his injury-time winner against Norwich City sparked wild celebrations later in the season, which earned him more time to prove himself to the onlooking Leeds fans who were beginning to get excited about what could be to come, given the ecstasy he produced with his match-winning effort
The youngster could have been forgiven for thinking he would have a larger role with Leeds in 2023/24 following the club’s relegation, as opposed to languishing within Leeds’ reserves or on the fringes of the first-team with very little game time to speak of last term.
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