Archie Gray is not interested in leaving Tottenham on loan in January
Tottenham Hotspur did a good job in the previous summer transfer window, where they not only moved on majority of the deadwood but also invested in some highly-rated young talents. One of those talents to arrive at the Hotspur Way was Archie Gray.
Archie Gray, who arrived from Leeds United in a £30 million deal in the past summer transfer window, has been majorly limited to cup competitions. He has started all of Spurs’ Europa League and Carabao Cup fixtures, playing almost in every position across the defence.
Yet, the England under-21 international has clocked only 581 minutes of action across 11 games in all competitions for Ange Postecoglou’s side. He has not been handed a single start in the Premier League thus far, which has alerted Championship clubs to assess Gray’s situation at White Hart Lane ahead of a potential January loan swoop.
Not only lack of regular minutes but failing to not get opportunities to operate in his preferred No.6 role may have frustrated Gray and his camp. However, the prodigious talent from Durham is not interested in sealing a loan exit from Tottenham in January. He believes staying in north London will improve his chances of making a breakthrough under Postecoglou.
Ex-scout Bryan King has hailed Gray’s attitude of staying at Spurs beyond the winter transfer window. He thinks the Englishman will profit from continuing to train with the first team at White Hart Lane.
“For Gray to be working and showing Postecoglou and the staff exactly how he is progressing, that is also a good way to improve as a footballer,” Bryan King exclusively told Tottenham News.
“Therefore, if Gray wants to stay at the club, that is a very good sign. As a result of the injury situation at Tottenham, I think all those things have to be looked at thoroughly.
“They can’t afford to be left short, they’re still in four competitions, and Gray is featuring regularly in Europe.
“He’s training with the first team, not the Under-21s, and that standard and level is as high as you can get in his situation.
“Therefore, if he goes out on loan, the level of training won’t be as high as where he is now. I think Gray would be doing the right thing by staying put and fighting, so well done to him if that is what he does.”
Big Ange has a good number of options in midfield to select from, even though Rodrigo Bentancur will start his seven-game domestic ban from the trip to Manchester City at the weekend. Nonetheless, Spurs will have a lot of games to cover in the upcoming weeks and months with the FA Cup competition also set to commence from early January.
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The Greek-Australian tactician will need options all across the pitch to cover the relentless fixture schedule. With Bentancur suspended from participating in the domestic games, Gray could hugely benefit and perhaps break into Big Ange’s first XI in the Premier League. He is a natural holding midfielder and would be a solid potential option to fill in for Bentancur.
It remains to be seen what happens in January but Gray staying at the club and fighting for his spot would not be a bad idea at all.
