Leeds United supporters will now have their eyes on who could be the next Archie Gray out of the academy.
Gray may only be 18 himself with plenty of development ahead of him, but that will no longer be in a Leeds shirt after his £40 million move to Tottenham on Tuesday.
Graham Smyth has predicted Gray will one day return to play for Leeds again but given the upwards trajectory of his career right now, that won’t happen for a long time yet.
It is not every year a youngster of Gray’s talent progresses through the ranks with such ease, but Leeds have a long history of academy players having a pathway to the first team and so hopefully there is another soon.
Gray has already tipped Charlie Crew to be the next cab off the rank. The 17-year-old was on the bench several times towards the back end of last season and has already been capped at senior level by Wales, so it would not be a surprise if Gray’s prediction was correct.
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Smyth shares how Leeds are feeling about Archie’s brother Harry Gray
Pre-season is the time for Daniel Farke to experiment a bit with some younger players. This time last year, it was Gray’s performances in the four friendlies that saw him become Leeds’ first choice midfielder.
And while Leeds will not be seeing another Gray in their first team next season, it certainly feels as though Archie’s younger brother Harry is not far away.
Harry is just 15 but is already extremely highly-rated at Leeds, with Archie even suggesting he is a better talent than himself.
Next season will undoubtedly come too early for him, but if he takes a similar career path to Archie he may well be ready in just a couple of years’ time.
Speaking on the latest episode of the Inside Elland Road Podcast, Graham Smyth says Harry is a talent ‘everyone is excited about’, having already trained and played six years above his age for the U21s.
He said: “Harry Gray is the other thing we should mention here, he keeps the legacy alive. I believe he has played with the U21s and is very much on the same path as his big brother, and is still only 15.
“He’s training up six years, has already played and scored for the U18s. Everyone is very excited about him there, but are keeping things very level headed and grounded, as they did with Archie.
“No one is making any big proclamations that he is going to play this season in the Championship, might be a bit early for that. That would be unreal but I think it would be best for all concerned if they take the Archie approach.
“Nobody say anything wild, nothing insane from anyone’s lips and at some point hopefully he’ll make the breakthrough.”
Will Harry be following Archie out of Leeds this summer?
Once it became clear Gray would be leaving over the weekend, it is fair to say social media was sent into a state of frenzy among Leeds supporters.
There were some suggestions Gray was forced out due to Leeds’ need to sell, which then led to rumours of Eddie looking to distance himself from the club, and Harry potentially following him out of the exit door.
Journalist Smyth, though, has quickly put those rumours to bed by suggesting nothing has changed regarding the plan for Harry despite Archie’s exit.
He said: “There’s absolutely no suggestion, and that was one of the rumours that was set running, that he was off. There’s no suggestion the plan is any different because of what happened with Archie.
“The plan is for him to stay and the Gray’s have always been very big where you are going to play, and which club will give you the opportunity. He’s better placed at Leeds than going to Manchester City and being one of a cast.”
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