Leeds United moved up to fifth and the play-off places in the Championship table on Saturday as they beat Bristol City 2-1 at Elland Road.
The Whites were able to claim all three points on home soil to move into the top six and have now only lost one of their last nine league outings.
Daniel Farke’s side are, however, nine points adrift of the automatic promotion places and have a way to go before they can compete for an instant return to the Premier League.
The 46-year-old tactician does have a proven track record at this level, though, as he won two Championship titles during his time with Norwich City.
He has also proven himself to be an excellent coach of young players. Farke previously admitted that he wants to develop and improve young talent and that was on show at Carrow Road with the likes of Max Aarons, Todd Cantwell, Emiliano Buendia, and James Maddison, but to name a few.
The Whites have had a number of talented academy prospects come through the youth system over the years and Archie Gray appears to be the next one to star for the first-team.
Leeds current most-valuable former academy players:
Player | Valuation (via Transfermarkt) |
|---|---|
Kalvin Phillips | £27.5m |
Pascal Struijk | £15.4m |
Crysencio Summerville | £12.8m |
Jack Clarke | £10.3m |
Lewis Cook | £8.5m |
Farke has placed his faith in the 17-year-old prodigy so far this season as the English gem has played in all 11 of the club’s Championship matches so far.
The majority of his appearances have come as a defensive midfielder but he was deployed at right-back against Bristol City and it could be a position that the manager is able to move him into full-time to be his next version of Aarons.
How did Gray perform against Bristol City?
Gray put in a fantastic display away from his most natural position and it led to Farke’s decision to play him there being dubbed a “great” call by journalist Phil Hay.
He was up against Sam Bell, who had scored four goals and created three ‘big chances’ in the previous ten matches, and restricted the attacker to very little throughout the game.
The Robins winger failed to register a single shot, did not complete any dribble attempts, and only created one chance in 67 minutes on the pitch, as per Sofascore.
This was, in part, down to Gray’s outstanding defensive display at right-back. The Leeds youngster dominated the opposition as he won 12 of his 15 individual duels on Saturday, with nine of 12 won on the deck.
He ended the match with a staggering eight completed tackles to his name and came out on top in all three of his aerial contests, which showed that the teenage talent was able to excel in all areas of his defensive work.
No Leeds player has averaged more than 2.7 tackles per match in the Championship this season, which illustrates how impressive Gray’s performance against Bristol City was as he was constantly able to cut out opposition attacks.
How did Max Aarons perform for Farke?
Farke handed Aarons his first-team debut at Norwich and the right-back went on to play 141 competitive matches for the German boss, which makes him the second most-used player in the manager’s career to date.
The former England U21 international won two Championship titles with the ex-Borussia Monchengladbach tactician during that time and caught the eye in both seasons.
He was named in the PFA Team of the Year for the 2018/19 campaign, which was his debut year as a first-team player, and earned his place in it again for the 2020/21 season, as the Canaries won their second title in three years.
This suggests that, under Farke, Aarons was the best right-back at Championship level in both of those seasons, as voted for by his peers.
The English dynamo averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.97 across 45 matches throughout the 2020/21 campaign and caught the eye with 1.6 tackles and interceptions and 1.4 key passes per game.
Aarons showcased his ability to make an impact at both ends of the pitch, by winning the ball back from the opposition and being able to make things happen in the final third, and Gray has the potential to do that as a right-back.
How many chances has Gray created this season?
The 17-year-old gem has created seven chances in nine Championship starts so far this season and is yet to register his first professional assist.
However, the Whites academy graduate, who was once dubbed “energetic” by journalist Joe Donnohue, did assist five goals in 26 matches at U21 level for the club and this indicates that the potential is there for him to be a creative threat.
Whether or not he can translate that creativity over to a right-back position remains to be seen, but Gray has showcased a willingness to burst forward to make things happen for his teammates at the top end of the pitch.
What’s next for Gray?
Farke may want to continue the England U17 international’s development as a central midfielder but his performance at right-back was outstanding in comparison to his displays in the middle of the park this season.
Gray had averaged a Sofascore rating of 6.73 across his first ten league matches as a midfield player and then recorded a score of 7.00 against Bristol City at right-back.
He created one chance against the Robins, in comparison to his 0.6 key passes per game overall, and his return of eight tackles far outperformed his seasonal average of 1.6 tackles per match.
These statistics suggest that the Whites number 22 excelled in a different role, although he had played there once for England at U17 level, and it could be one that Farke is able to utilise him in long-term.
The German head coach made the decision to convert Ben Godfrey from a defensive midfielder to a central defender during his time at Norwich, and that move turned out to be a masterclass as the Canaries went on to sell him to Everton for £25m.
This shows that the manager knows how to spot when a player can star in a different position and Gray, who ex-Leeds forward Jermaine Beckford claimed has a “bright future” ahead of him, could be the next ace to benefit from Farke’s coaching to become the boss’ next Aarons.
