Archie Gray made his official Tottenham Hotspur debut on Wednesday in a pre-season friendly against Scottish side Hearts, and Ange Postecoglou has given his verdict after his Leeds United exit.
Gray, 18, left Leeds to join Tottenham earlier this month for a fee of £40m. A move that allowed Leeds to strike a deal for Joe Rodon, costing a quarter of the fee Spurs paid Leeds to sign the England U21 star.
The Thorp Arch academy product featured in an unofficial friendly for Tottenham against Cambridge a few days ago. But in what was Tottenham’s first proper friendly, Gray started in a surprise new position.
Postecoglou started Gray at centre-back alongside Oliver Skipp as Spurs completely dismantled Scottish side Hearts at Tynecastle, 5-1. He actually played for Leeds against Hearts last summer, in pre-season.
What Postecoglou said about Gray after first proper outing
Already on social media, there have been clips made up of Gray’s performance after being given the first 45 minutes of the 5-1 win as a central defender. A completely new role, but one he took to easily.
Gray’s versatility comes as no surprise to Leeds fans having played right-back, central midfield and as a no.10 last season. The teenager was excellent in the middle of defence, winning duels time after time.
Postecoglou spoke to Tottenham’s website about new young signings Gray and Lucas Bergvall and he gave a glowing verdict of Gray, who already looks at home at Tottenham following his Leeds exit.
“Archie did well. He probably wasn’t expecting to be starting in a back four. It’s for guys like Archie to get accustomed to how we play, how we train and he’s an intelligent kid and coped with that okay,” he said.
“It’s about letting him and Lucas settle into things. But I thought Archie was really good today. He did the things we know he can do well, he’s adapting to the intensity and tempo of what we do. Lucas the same.
“They’re both really good kids. The right attitude, humble but really ambitious, want to make an impact. They are not here to just ease their way in, they want to play, They bring a good energy to the group.”
Gray adds another string to his already very large bow
For Leeds fans, it stung a little bit to see Gray performing in a Tottenham shirt. Leeds themselves said it was “heartbreaking” to have to sell the wonderkid but for a £30m profit and Rodon, a necessary sale.
But it will come as no surprise to Leeds fans that Gray impressed against Scottish Premiership opposition. Even in the middle of the defence. His tenacity, power and controlled aggression suited the role perfectly.
Having already shown he can play as a right-back, a holding midfielder, box-to-box and further forward as an attacking midfielder, Gray has passed the first test as a centre-back, big tick next to his name.
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