Two years ago, Archie Gray was preparing for the first leg of Leeds United’s Championship play-off semi-final against Norwich City at Carrow Road.
The then 18-year-old started in an advanced midfield role behind Georginio Rutter, Crysencio Summerville and Wilfried Gnonto in a 0-0 draw. Four days later, Gray played the full 90 minutes at right-back in a crushing 4-0 victory in the return leg at Elland Road. Gray retained his position at full-back for Leeds’ 1-0 defeat to Southampton in the play-off final.
Within a month, he was at the centre of a dramatic transfer tussle between Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur. Gray was on the cusp of joining Brentford before changing his mind at the last minute and completing a £40million move to Spurs.
Gray will be reunited with his former employers, and the club his family shares a fascinating history with, on Monday when Spurs host Leeds. He will be desperate to make an appearance after being an unused substitute under Thomas Frank when Spurs won 2-1 at Elland Road in October.
The visit of Leeds raises questions about Gray’s development in north London over the last two years and what the future holds. Game time has been limited since Roberto De Zerbi replaced Igor Tudor in the dugout in March, but Gray’s new boss insists his hopes for the youngster are high.
“He is very young, (but has) big potential as a player,” De Zerbi said in his press conference ahead of the Leeds game. “I think he can become the future. I am sure he can become the future of this club, the captain of this club and he has to understand better what will be his position on the pitch.”
Following Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat to Sunderland in De Zerbi’s first game in charge, television pundit Jamie Carragher criticised their central midfield.
Carragher argued on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football that West Ham United, Nottingham Forest and Leeds have better options than Spurs. The former Liverpool and England defender highlighted their lack of quality in possession before pointing out Gray and Conor Gallagher’s poor defending in the build-up to Nordi Mukiele’s deflected winner. He did offer some faint praise for the former.
“I think (Lucas) Bergvall and Gray have been two of the better players for Spurs,” Carragher said. “(But) are two young kids learning their trade going to get you out of a relegation battle?”
Bergvall, Gray and Gallagher started together against Sunderland last month. Since then, De Zerbi has seemingly agreed with Carragher’s analysis. The Italian has kept faith with Gallagher but preferred the experience of Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma or Joao Palhinha alongside him. Bentancur’s return from a three-month lay-off with a hamstring injury has had a significant impact. The Uruguay international looks composed on the ball under pressure and more capable of playing progressive passes. Spurs have won seven points from the last three games Bentancur has started.
Palhinha scored the crucial winner against Wolverhampton Wanderers and was excellent out of possession in his first start under De Zerbi against Aston Villa. Gallagher rewarded De Zerbi’s patience with a stunning long-range strike in the 2-1 victory over Unai Emery’s side at Villa Park. The Bentancur and Palhinha partnership, which became a source of frustration for fans during Frank’s reign for a perceived lack of creativity, suddenly looks like the right blend to help Spurs avoid relegation. De Zerbi has now publicly expressed his desire to keep Palhinha beyond the end of his season-long loan from Bayern Munich.
Gray made a 30-minute cameo off the bench in De Zerbi’s second game, the 2-2 draw with Brighton & Hove Albion, but has been an unused substitute in their last two matches. He has been transformed from one of the only players to emerge with any credit from Tudor’s brief spell to a spectator.
Gray’s progress has been disrupted by Tottenham’s injury crisis over the last two seasons. The England Under-21 international has never been able to consistently play in midfield because he has always provided emergency cover in defence. The 20-year-old has therefore been unable to establish a more exact role in the midfield. Gray’s position map for the 2025-26 season demonstrates he has regularly switched between holding midfield and a slightly more advanced position.
Gray started 12 games in a row across the Premier League and Champions League between February and April. He played in three different positions (central midfield, left-back and right-back) under three head coaches. Gray has made 80 appearances since he joined Spurs from Leeds, and worked with Ange Postecoglou, Frank, Tudor and De Zerbi. Each coach has their own tactical ideas and instructions for the players — Gray has barely any time to learn them before the next head coach is installed.
Some would argue Gray made a mistake in the build-up to Callum Hudson-Odoi’s first goal in Nottingham Forest’s 3-0 victory over Spurs in December. Gray received the ball from goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario on the edge of his own box and should have played a first-time pass to Cristian Romero. Instead, Ibrahim Sangare pounced on his loose first touch and played in Hudson-Odoi. Gray started Tottenham’s next four matches in central midfield but since the turn of the year has again regularly been deployed across the defence, and sometimes on the right of midfield. How is he supposed to become better at receiving the ball in those situations if he rarely plays there?
If Gray’s development has stalled, it is a symptom of Spurs’ struggles over the last two seasons. The 20-year-old’s versatility has become a strength and a weakness. De Zerbi alluded to this on Thursday.
“He can play in a lot of positions, but maybe I would like him to be more specific in one position,” De Zerbi said. “We are working on that, in individual meetings with individual clips for me and anyway he is an important player. Palhinha did not play the first three games and the fourth was one of the best players on the pitch.”
This pattern has followed Gray throughout his career. At 17 he impressed for Leeds in a fifth-round FA Cup tie against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in February 2024. Gray played in a midfield pivot alongside Ethan Ampadu and his tackle on Moises Caicedo on the edge of Chelsea’s box led to Mateo Joseph giving Leeds a 1-0 lead.
Chelsea went on to win 3-2, Gallagher scoring the decisive goal, but Gray held his own against Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez who had just moved to west London for £106m after winning the World Cup with Argentina.
Gray’s reward? A place at right-back for a 1-1 draw with Huddersfield Town in the Championship three days later.
Gray has also played in a variety of different positions at youth level and scored when playing in midfield alongside Borussia Dortmund’s Jobe Bellingham in England U21s 4-1 victory over Moldova in March.
A lot of this applies to Bergvall too. It feels like the pair’s fate is intertwined. They both joined Spurs in the summer of 2024 when they were only 18, play in the same position and have a good relationship off the pitch. Postecoglou memorably praised them after Bergvall scored in Spurs’ 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of last season’s Carabao Cup semi-final. Gray started that game at centre-back alongside Radu Dragusin.
“I’m so happy they’re at our football club,” Postecoglou said. “In two or three years’ time, I just pray to God I’m the beneficiary of their talent, mate, because if somebody else is getting it, I won’t be happy.”
Clearly, the only focus for Spurs right now should be picking up enough points in their remaining three games to avoid relegation. Next season, there needs to be a consistent long-term plan to help Gray and Bergvall fulfil their potential. On the opening day of the campaign, the duo started together in midfield with Pape Matar Sarr in a 3-0 victory over Burnley. It was a youthful blend which offered an exciting glimpse of the future but, unfortunately, none of them have truly flourished this season.