Tottenham Hotspur have a "really exciting" teenager who could be about to replace long-serving defender Ben Davies, with the former Swansea City star potentially playing out his final season in north London.
Ben Davies nearing Spurs exit after 11-year stay
Next summer will mark 11 years at Spurs for Davies, following his move to N17 from Swansea in 2014.
Since making the switch to London from Wales, the versatile defender has made an impressive 333 appearances in all competitions for Tottenham, playing in some huge games for the club and showcasing real reliability.
However, the 31-year-old is now reaching the twilight phase of his career and has barely been called upon by Ange Postecoglou so far this season. Davies captained Spurs to a dramatic 2-1 win over Coventry City in the EFL Cup, whilst also starting both of their Europa League games, but he hasn't played a single minute of Premier League football.
Davies didn't even make the matchday squad for Spurs' most recent top-flight clashes against Brentford, Man United and Brighton, with the centre-back/left-back reduced to being a bit-part cup player.
It is believed that Davies earns more than both Destiny Udogie and Micky van de Ven at Tottenham, despite the latter pair's status as mainstays in Postecoglou's starting eleven, so chairman Daniel Levy and technical director Johan Lange may well opt to let go of him when his contract runs out in 2025.
Luckily, Postecoglou appears to have a ready-made replacement for the veteran in summer signing Archie Gray. The 18-year-old can play in a variety of positions, including at full-back, so Gray may well stand out as a very good option to take Postecoglou's side forward in the coming seasons.
Gray is widely regarded as one of England's most promising up-and-coming talents, with Spurs utilising his quality on a number of occasions already following his stellar campaign at Leeds United in the Championship last season.
Tottenham tipped to replace Ben Davies with Archie Gray
Speaking to Tottenham News this week, pundit John Wenham has tipped Spurs to replace Davies with Gray. The former could be about to pass the torch down to Levy's summer signing, with Wenham also branding the teenager "really exciting".
“Gray is doing really well,” Wenham said.
“I think, at a minimum, he is going to become the next Davies in the squad, in terms of his reliability in multiple positions. Davies is out of contract this summer and I can see Gray taking his role in the squad. Him being so young and counting as homegrown too, that is really exciting.”
Leeds were heartbroken to lose their Thorp Arch academy graduate in the summer, highlighting just how highly rated he is by those working in the beautiful game.
"Understanding the attraction of Premier League and European football, the club, with a heavy heart, agreed the transfer, but the move has strengthened the board’s resolve to ultimately return Leeds to a position where it can meet the footballing ambitions of even its brightest stars," wrote Leeds in a candid statement (via Ben Jacobs).
"Whilst we understand that supporters will be hugely disappointed to lose such a home-grown talent, and a family name so synonymous with Leeds United, the move improves the club’s chance to compete for automatic promotion next season by increasing our ability to build a competitive squad within the league’s financial control regulations. Everyone at Leeds United is heartbroken to see one of our own depart and would like to thank Archie for all his efforts and professionalism."