Thomas Frank has made an admission about Archie Gray after the Tottenham teenager netted his first goal for the Lilywhites in their 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.
Gray has displaced Joao Palhinha as Frank’s preferred midfield partner to Rodrigo Bentancur, and the youngster is growing with each outing.
The 19-year-old has been dubbed a future star in the Tottenham midfield by pundits, and he is showing just why he is so highly thought of by many in the game.
The youngster is still learning the ropes of playing in the middle of the park at the highest level after being used in defence by Ange Postecoglou last term, and the Tottenham boss has now revealed what he noticed about the former Leeds man.
Thomas Frank has seen growth in Archie Gray in new Tottenham role
The youngster has not been backed by Frank from day one, having struggled for minutes in the first few months of the season.
However, he is now establishing himself as a key player for the side, and the Tottenham boss admits that he has seen the youngster grow and add more layers to his game over recent months.
When asked about Gray’s first senior goal, Frank responded (via BBC Sport): “Very pleased for him. He shows a lot of character, and there has been a lot of growth in him, no doubt about that, he just adds small layers.
“It’s not like we are a fully free-flowing team yet, there have been a few bumps on the way, and he has been in the team and keeps doing well. Sometimes it is easier coming into a team where everything is working in a perfect way, so I think he shows that he has that resilience.”
When asked if the midfielder gives a glimpse into the future of the team, Frank said (via Football.London): “Yes I think so. I think he shows a lot of quality, he covers ground so well, he’s excellent in the pressing game, the defensive transition, and brilliant at closing down. And then I think he’s good on the ball, but there are parts of the game where we are not top in that area, and didn’t show enough of his qualities there.”
Frank praises Gray’s resilience following recent mistake
It was only two weeks ago that Gray hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons after his error led to Nottingham Forest’s opening goal in Tottenham’s 3-0 loss at the City Ground.
Thomas Frank is over the moon with how the teenager has bounced back from that to deliver two impressive performances back-to-back.
The Spurs boss added: ” I think Archie is growing. He showed why he has a very good potential in many ways. I think it’s another fine performance overall today. Talking about resilience, he made a mistake in the Nottingham game, played another good game against Liverpool, and is growing as a young man. He was alert. I loved that goal, because he was alert, he was seeing where the ball would land, and he was ready for it.”