Report: Liverpool among Premier League clubs chasing Joe Gelhardt

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Liverpool and Everton have emerged as potential suitors to sign Wigan Athletic starlet Joe Gelhardt, according to Goal.

The hotshot striker is a boyhood Liverpool supporter but has been with the Latics since the age of 10, progressing through their academy.

He is viewed as one of the Championship’s biggest prospects and Liverpool will face competition for his signature from rivals Everton.

The player with a wand of a left-foot took his bow for Wigan in a League Cup defeat to Rotherham in August 2018.

In April he played his first league game for Paul Cook’s men in a game at Birmingham City.

Gelhardt came off the bench in Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Barnsley and the 17-year-old looks like being a star of the future.

The striker played for Wigan’s under-18 team in an FA Youth Cup tie against Liverpool last season. It was there where he caught the eye of Academy Director, Alex Inglethorpe.

Everton are set to rival Liverpool although several Premier League clubs have shown interest.

The report says that Wolves, Leicester and Chelsea were regular attendees at Wigan youth games last season.

TBR Verdict – Have Liverpool lined-up a replacement for Bobby Duncan

The England under-18 youth international must be careful when deciding what to do with the next chapter of his career.

Playing football should be paramount and he would be well within his right to demand answers on the pathway to the first-team at the interested clubs.

Liverpool have just offloaded Bobby Duncan to Fiorentina for £1.8 million (BBC Sport) and they may see Gelhardt as a replacement for him in the academy ranks for now.

Gelhardt is in the same mould as the recently departed Liverpool man and it certainly wouldn’t be a bad replacement if that was the case.

It would appear he is knocking on the door at Wigan right now and a chance to play first-team football for a couple of years at the DW Stadium might be the best option for him right now.