Why Archie Gray solves three Tottenham problems in one
Tottenham Hotspur’s attempts to assemble a wonderkid super squad continue to gather pace following the acquisition of Archie Gray from Leeds United.
Spurs have paid £40m for the versatile 18-year-old who made 52 appearances for Leeds last season and was named Young Player of the Year in the Championship. He has signed a six-year contract and will wear the number 14 shirt for his new club.
It’s a significant fee for a player of his age and experience but Gray, already an England U21 international, is regarded as one of the country’s top up-and-coming prospects and first began training with Leeds’ first team aged 15. The Championship club have taken the unusual step of admitting they are “heartbroken” by his exit.
Although Gray has only one season of senior football behind him, he is expected to challenge for a place in Ange Postecoglou’s first-team squad straight away as Tottenham seek to build on a promising, if inconsistent, start to the Australian’s tenure in north London.
First-team opportunities should be plentiful given Spurs will play in the expanded Europa League next season courtesy of finishing 5th in the Premier League.
It’s an expensive transfer – Tottenham have spent as much on Gray as they did to buy James Maddison from Leicester City last summer – but it’s one that could solve multiple issues.
For starters, central midfield has been a problem position for Postecoglou. Maddison and Pape Matar Sarr were brilliant last autumn but unable to sustain that level of form post-Christmas, while neither Yves Bissouma nor Rodrigo Bentancur convinced as play-building No 6s beyond a game or two.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Giovani Lo Celso are expected to be sold.
A lack of cohesion in that area of the pitch contributed to Spurs conceding 61 league goals, their fourth-worst record in a Premier League campaign.
Gray doesn’t shirk his defensive responsibilities. He made 97 tackles for Leeds last season, at least 20 more than any teammate and a total that placed him in the top 15 players in the Championship for that metric.
He reads the game exceptionally well for a novice and snaps into duels when the ball is there to be won.
Those attributes saw Gray utilised as a defensive midfielder on occasion for Leeds, but his ball-winning ability, tight close control, powerful driving runs and pressing off the ball could be better served by playing in a more advanced role. As a technically gifted scrapper he should, in theory, be custom-made for “Angeball”, a strategy that places a premium on both craft and graft.
He will know what to expect from his new boss having watched his daring Celtic team with keen interest. Although an England youth international, Gray hails from a family of Celtic fans. His father Andy, grandfather Frank, and great-uncle Eddie all represented Scotland at senior level.
“I’m not going to lie, I’m a massive Celtic fan, so I love him [Postecoglou]! My whole family loves him,” Gray said in his first in-house interview with Spurs.
“He’s a massive factor [in joining]. Playing under a really good manager is really important for me. I’ve got loads to learn because I’m only 18.”
Initially, though, Spurs may use him as Leeds tended to: as an inverted right-back. Unlike the middle of the park, that isn’t an obvious issue of weakness for Tottenham. After some teething issues and OTT pundit criticism at the start, Pedro Porro adapted to a more nuanced full-back role from the flying wing-back position he was initially bought to fill.
Porro’s puzzling omission from Spain’s Euro 2024 squad will benefit his club, but he can’t be expected to play every game. Spurs only played 41 matches in all competitions last season, but that number will increase to at least 48 in 2024-25. With the club doing all they can to shift Emerson Royal on, cover for Porro will be required and Gray has the skillset to fill in.
There is also a less glamorous need that Gray fills in the Tottenham squad: that of the “homegrown” player.
Spurs have had issues filling their quotas in recent years. Premier League and Uefa rules dictate that clubs must have a minimum of eight players classified as homegrown – that is developed at an English club – including four from their own academy, in their 25-man first-team squads. Tottenham only just met the minimum threshold for 2023-24 and Ryan Sessegnon has since left following the expiration of his contract.
Assuming that Gray remains at Spurs for the next three years, he will also be regarded as a club-trained player by the start of the 2027-28 season, despite being on Leeds’ books from the age of eight to 18. That’s because players who have spent three consecutive years at the same club from the age of 18 fit that criteria.
Considering Oliver Skipp and backup goalkeepers Brandon Austin and Alfie Whiteman are currently the only senior club-trained assets in Tottenham’s first-team squad, that could prove to be very handy indeed.
That being said, Spurs would regard it as a failure if none of their academy jewels end up glistening for the seniors over the next few years.
Tottenham’s U21s won the Premier League 2 title in 2023-24 and internally there is plenty of hope over the prospects of midfielder Tyrese Hall (18), playmaker Jamie Donley (19), centre-back Alfie Dorrington (19), and especially the winger Mikey Moore (16) who became the club’s youngest-ever appearance maker in the Premier League in May. Dane Scarlett (20) and Alfie Devine (19) are also highly regarded.
Gray’s signing is further evidence of Spurs’ renewed focus on buying the best prospects domestically and from abroad.
Since the summer transfer window in 2022, the club has bought Micky van de Ven (23), Brennan Johnson (23), Radu Dragusin (22), Destiny Udogie (21), Alejo Veliz (20), Will Lankshear (19), Ashley Phillips (19), Lucas Bergvall (18) and Luka Vuskovic (17).
The grand masterplan appears to be investing in youth now to build toward a brighter future. Continue on his current trajectory and Gray will be a pivotal part of the project.
