Joe Gelhardt has been criminally underused as Leeds need his spar

Joe Gelhardt was frustratingly left warming the bench again and the game had gone by the time he came on at Manchester City… the striker has been criminally underused and Leeds need his spark to reignite their season

• Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa is keen to manage Joe Gelhardt carefully
• The 19-year-old was again on the bench for Tuesday’s game at Manchester City 
• It was an admission of a mistake from Bielsa that he brought him on at half-time
• Injury-hit Leeds were beaten 7-0 – their heaviest defeat in the Premier League

When the team news dropped, Leeds fans only had one thought: why is Joffy not starting?

Supporters have been crying out to see more of Joe ‘Joffy’ Gelhardt, who scored with his first touch in Saturday’s 3-2 defeat at Chelsea and also earned a match-saving penalty in his previous substitute appearance against Wolves.

With last season’s top scorer Patrick Bamford still out injured, Marcelo Bielsa surely had nothing to lose by giving Gelhardt a go from the off at Manchester City.

Joe Gelhardt came on at half-time but Leeds were already 3-0 down at Manchester City

And yet the 19-year-old striker was frustratingly left warming the bench once more, with winger Dan James again playing out of position as a centre forward and failing to seize his chance.

It was an admission of a mistake from Bielsa that he brought Gelhardt on for James at half-time. But by then the game had already gone, with Leeds managing just six final-third passes in a pitiful first half.

Of course, it is unlikely Gelhardt alone would have altered the course of a one-sided match, which was Leeds’ heaviest ever defeat in the Premier League. But the spark he has shown in his limited game time is the sort the Whites need to reignite their stuttering season — and Bielsa would do well to start him on Saturday against Arsenal to give Elland Road a lift.

Lesds fans have been crying out to see more of the teenager after his impressive cameos

Not that Bielsa ever makes decisions just to please his public. The Leeds boss is stubbornly loyal to his first-choice players. You only need see how he stuck by the misfiring Bamford in Leeds’ promotion campaign from the Championship when fans were calling for on-loan Eddie Nketiah to start.

Bielsa is also keen to manage Gelhardt carefully, much like Tuesday night’s opposite number Pep Guardiola handled Phil Foden’s first few years in senior football.

However, Guardiola was able to hold back last night’s opening scorer because of his embarrassment of riches in the forward positions. Bielsa has no such luxury and it is time he gave Gelhardt a proper run of games. Certainly, something needs to change and he is one of the few options Bielsa has given his lengthy injury list, to which right back Jamie Shackleton was added last night.

Leeds have seven first-team players on the treatment table including, crucially, England internationals Bamford and Kalvin Phillips. And the Whites’ record without Phillips, who is set to be out until February after a hamstring operation, is of particular concern.

The 19-year-old striker scored with his first touch in Saturday’s 3-2 defeat at Chelsea

They have lost 11 of the 14 Premier League games the midfielder has missed, compared with only 11 defeats in 41 matches when he has played. It is no wonder many Leeds fans fear relegation.

The last time Bielsa’s side visited the Etihad in April, they stunned the runaway league leaders 2-1 and climbed to ninth in the table — their final position.

This heavy defeat leaves them in 16th, only five points clear of third-bottom Burnley, who have two games in hand.

The January transfer window is going to be crucial to Leeds’ hopes of staying up but Bielsa is always reluctant to change his squad. If the Argentine keeps his stubborn stance, he must at least trust Gelhardt.

Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa is keen to manage Gelhardt carefully at the start of his career

It seems criminal that the former Wigan striker has played just 182 minutes in the Premier League — and made only one start — given the impact he has made on the pitch.

He has scored as many goals as James has managed in more than 19 hours this term, while Tyler Roberts, who started as a No 10 at the Etihad, has netted just two top-flight goals for Leeds in 33 hours of football.

‘I’m surprised he wasn’t starting because he is a real, real talent,’ said Sportsmail columnist Peter Crouch last night. ‘He has been held back. The Leeds fans think a lot of him and would like to see more of him.’

Bielsa would do well to give fans what they want.

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