---
title: "Leeds: Leo Hjelde tipped to return to Celtic on loan"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/leeds-leo-hjelde-tipped-to-return-to-celtic-on-loan/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Henry Jackson"
section: "Leeds United News"
published: "2021-08-27T18:40:59Z"
modified: "2021-08-27T18:40:59Z"
---

# Leeds: Leo Hjelde tipped to return to Celtic on loan

**Leo Hjelde has been tipped to make an immediate return to Celtic this season after Leeds United completed their move for the exciting centre-back.**

### The Lowdown: Hjelde completes Leeds move

The Whites aren’t expected to make many more signings between now and the end of the transfer window, but Hjelde had been [tipped](https://twitter.com/PhilHay_/status/1429736415403859969?s=20) to come in by the reliable Phil Hay.

The 18-year-old is considered a young player of huge potential, even being [compared](https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/leo-hjelde-leeds-united-transfer-20856181) to Liverpool superstar Virgil van Dijk in the past.

The Whites [confirmed](https://www.leedsunited.com/news/team-news/28615/leeds-united-complete-leo-hjelde-swoop) a deal on Friday, revealing the youngster will ‘initially’ join up with Mark Jackson’s under-23 side. What happens after that is where this pundit’s prediction comes in.

\[freshpress-quiz id=“359346″\]

### The Latest: Mills makes key prediction

Speaking to [*Football Insider*](https://www.footballinsider247.com/leeds-united-could-be-set-to-loan-possible-new-signing-to-celtic-kenny/), former Leeds goalkeeper Paddy Kenny tipped Hjelde to go straight back to Celtic on loan after he joins, in order to get more chances at first-team football:

> “We’ve seen Premier League teams are willing to pay good money for younger players and then loan them out.
>
> “Leeds are showing that, like a lot of clubs, they can pay a lot for young players who aren’t necessarily gonna feature in the first team.
>
> “They can send him out on loan because that is key to any player’s development. So that could be an option, he could even go back to Celtic.
>
> “You can get them used to playing week in, week out against men in competitive matches. He’s obviously a superb player. It’s alright playing under-23s football but it’s not the same as the first-team game.”

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### The Verdict: Makes perfect sense

This is a decision that would make complete sense from a Leeds perspective, in terms of Hjelde’s development as a player.

The teenager would struggle for playing time at Elland Road, considering Liam Cooper, Robin Koch, Pascal Struijk and Diego Llorente would all be ahead of him in the centre-back pecking order currently.

Instead, maturing further as a player at Celtic would hopefully see him return to Leeds as a more rounded footballer, before becoming a squad player next season.

***In other news, Leeds reportedly missed out on the signing of one hugely experienced player this summer. Read more [here](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/leeds-united-transfer-rumours/leeds-united-whites-missed-out-on-gary-medel-signing/).***