Clement could ditch Roofe with Rangers swoop for £14k-p/w whiz

The Light Blues are reportedly one of the two teams interested in signing Leeds United’s Joe Gelhardt this month, according to a Daily Mail story.

Competitors In order to strengthen their assault, Celtic is rumored to be considering making a move to sign the former England U20 international from the Championship team.

But it’s unclear from the statement whether the two teams want to sign the £14,000-per-week player on a long-term loan until the end of the season, as was the case when Wolverhampton Wanderers signed Fabio Silva.
By getting a deal for Gelhardt ahead of the Hoops before the window closes, Philippe Clement could now definitively cut Kemar Roofe from the team.
Due to his inconsistent availability, the 31-year-old striker’s present contract at Ibrox is set to end this summer, and the Belgian head coach should split ways with him.
Roofe has not been a bad center-forward for Rangers, but he has not performed well on the field. But as a player prone to injuries, he is not a dependable choice for Clement.

The former Leeds striker, who joined the team in 2020 after moving from Anderlecht, has scored 38 goals in 93 games across all competitions, which is a decent return.

Roofe’s problem has been that throughout that time, he has missed an incredible 88 games for the Gers in which he has been competitive, meaning that he has virtually missed as many games as he has played.
Because Clement can’t count on him to be a viable option for the entire season, he ought to be cut from the team, which Gelhardt’s addition would make easier.
The 21-year-old wizard has not yet proven to be able to consistently influence games at the top of the pitch at the senior level.

He has only made six league appearances for Leeds so far this season, but while on loan at Sunderland in the second part of last season, he scored three goals and provided three assists in 18 Championship games.

Nonetheless, the youthful star was a prolific scorer for Leeds and Wigan in his youth, and he did assist six goals in 31 Premier League games for the Whites.
After scoring five goals in five U18 games for Wigan, Gelhardt—who former Leeds manager Victor Orta reportedly described as having “ice with fire” on the field—ravaged an incredible 20 goals and six assists in 31 U21 games for his present side.

These numbers indicate that he has the ability to be a devastating scorer, but he hasn’t demonstrated it at the first-team level in England. For that reason, moving to Scotland might be the best course of action for him to take in order to play in a dominant squad that will provide him lots of opportunities.

Notably, Gelhardt has never had an injury listed on Transfermarkt. This indicates that he will be significantly more dependable than Roofe in terms of availability, which is why Clement may be able to pass on the Jamaican international in favor of the Leeds kid.

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