‘Phenomenal’ Leeds United player needs to take a look at Jack Clarke after rumours about him today

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Leeds United youngster Archie Gray was always going to start attracting Premier League admirers after his start to the season.

And it has not taken long for one of the big boys to start sniffing around, with the Daily Mail reporting this morning that Liverpool are interested in a deal that could cost in excess of £40 million.

Jurgen Klopp is reportedly attracted by the fact Gray can play as both a central midfielder and right back, like one of their star men Trent Alexander-Arnold has been doing in the last 12 months.

However, at 17, the ‘phenomenal’ Gray must consider whether a move to a club like Liverpool is what he needs at this stage of his career.

Getting regular minutes at a top Championship side, that could be in the Premier League by the end of the season, is surely perfect for him.

Gray should use Jack Clarke example and stay at Leeds

One example Gray should look at as to why it would not be a good move is Jack Clarke. Clarke was just 18 and had less than a full season at Leeds before he went to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2019.

Only in the last 12 – 18 months has Clarke been able to get his career back on track since then, having made just four senior appearances across his three year spell in North London.

Clarke endured poor Championship loan spells at Leeds, QPR and Stoke City while he was at Spurs, and even had to drop down to League One with Sunderland to recover the form that earned him his big move in the first place.

Of course, Clarke is now thriving at Sunderland, but ultimately he wasted two years of his career and it doesn’t have to be like that for Gray.

With the trajectory he is developing at, it is inevitable that one day he will move on from Leeds and end up at club like Liverpool, where he will be fighting for the top honours, year in, year out.

But there is absolutely no rush for him to go and do that right away. He would still only be 20 if he had three more years at Leeds, such is the age he has managed to make his breakthrough.

Those are all factors he should be considering as the big boys begin to circle.