Joe Gelhardt has told BBC Radio Leeds that new Leeds United signing Willy Gnonto is capable of playing anywhere in the front four positions, and that he is a “lovely lad” after the Italy international joined the club on deadline day.
Gnonto, 18, penned a five-year deal after moves for Cody Gakpo and Bamba Dieng fell through. The Italy star was linked with Leeds earlier on in the window and after failing to get the two prior deals done, Leeds went after Gnonto.
He joins from Swiss side Zurich where he had a hand in 22 goals during 74 games. An impressive tally given his age. His form has also earned caps for Italy, scoring in the Nations League for Roberto Mancini’s side against Germany.
Asked about Gnonto in an interview with Adam Pope, Gelhardt gave a bit of insight into the newest Leeds player. He says Gnonto is “fast” and able to play anywhere in the front four positions of Jesse Marsch’s 4-2-3-1 system.
“He’s trained the last two days,” Gelhardt said, in a piece published on Wednesday. “Very sharp, very fast. He’s lively. He’ll play anywhere across the front four. He’s a lovely lad and I’m sure he’ll do very well for us.”
Joe Gelhardt: New Leeds signing Willy Gnonto is a ‘lovely lad’
A nice verdict from Gelhardt, given Gnonto is going to be direct competition for the England Under-21 man. But it is a signing with plenty of hype given his early-career form at Zurich, who face Arsenal in the Europa League on Thursday.
Gnonto provides some much-needed cover up top. Rodrigo is out injured with a dislocated shoulder, and Bamford’s injury woes continue to hamper his progress. It will be interesting to see how Jesse Marsch uses Gnonto.
Especially, given Gelhardt says he can play on either flank, as a 10 or up front. With Dan James leaving, he might be used primarily as a winger but also providing cover up top. He could feature for the 21’s against West Brom on Friday.
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