Hjelde made his debut for the Whites’ Under-23s squad in the game against West Ham over the weekend and impressively denied the Hammers a clear chance on goal with a neat last-ditch tackle in the second half.
The Whites ultimately ended up sharing the spoils with the Hammers as the Premier League 2 game ended in a 2-2 draw.
Jackson admitted that Hjelde found things difficult in the first half due to having to play in the left-back position when he is naturally a centre-back.
The head coach though praised the starlet’s performance in the second half as he put aside the troubles of the first 45 to produce a great display.
“He signed and went away on international duty, so he’s not trained a lot with us”, Jackson was quoted as saying by the Yorkshire Evening Post.
“We know he can play left-back.
“He played there during his loan spell with Ross County – but ultimately he is a centre-back.
“He showed that in the second half [against West Ham] and I thought his second half performance was really pleasing.
“He was finding his feet in the first half and he found it tough but he stuck at it.
“Overall it was a good performance.”
Hjelde got 12 appearances for Ross County under his belt during his loan stint and he will be hoping his performance against West Ham is the start of a great spell at Elland Road.
