Leeds United fans will be somewhat frustrated with their team’s efforts near the top of the Championship, with the Whites very rarely blowing teams away in the second tier even when more and more victories are tallied up.
Daniel Farke’s men are also heavily reliant on their golden form at Elland Road in keeping their automatic promotion dreams ticking over, having won nine out of 11 games on their own patch this season in the league, compared to their struggles away from the comforts of West Yorkshire.
In stark contrast, the promotion chasers have only three of their ten away contests, with a last-minute own goal salvaging a draw last time out on the road away at Preston North End.
Mateo Joseph had a big part to play in that Jack Whatmough own goal finding the back of the net, as his effort went off the unfortunate Lilywhites man, with the Spanish hotshot another that the Whites will be proud of coming from their own production line.
Leeds' best modern youngsters
Leeds have produced some top-quality talent through their own academy in recent times, with the aforementioned Joseph the next star the Whites will hope can go on to achieve bigger and better things away from the Championship.
He hasn’t quite developed into a potent striker in the first team as of yet – with just two strikes coming his way so far this season in the second tier – but the 21-year-old’s goalscoring antics at youth level mean he could explode into life if given time, considering he has a healthy goal return of 20 playing for the U18s and U21s.
Farke’s promotion candidates will be well aware that if this does occur, many a higher-up suitor will be interested in their top asset, having had to sell a whole host of homegrown gems over the years when a mammoth bid has come in.
The most obvious name that springs to mind here is Kalvin Phillips, who left West Yorkshire behind in 2022 for Manchester City, after Pep Guardiola’s men had snapped up his services for a bumper £45m.
After all, the former Whites number 23 had become an icon at his hometown employers, with a promotion under his belt up to the Premier League making him a much-adored figure, alongside the fact he would amass 234 appearances before the grandeur of City proved too tempting.
There are other faces that graced Elland Road as a youngster and are also now very capable of playing at the top of the English game, with Lewis Cook one that is potentially dismissed as being an original Thorp Arch creation, having gone on to impressively notch up 150 appearances in the Premier League for AFC Bournemouth.
Leeds fans won’t have forgotten about another homegrown star yet, however, with the ace in question initially garnering hype in West Yorkshire when Marcelo Bielsa occupied the hot seat.
Archie Gray's rise at Leeds
Archie Gray is the player in question here, who is now on the books of Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur despite still only being 18 years of age.
Age has always just been a number in Gray’s situation, however, as the teenager was amazingly warming the substitutes bench of the men’s team during Bielsa’s reign, even when Leeds were competing in the top-flight.
Gray would make up the numbers on the bench for Leeds when he was only the tender age of 15, with the Argentinian having to resort to throwing the versatile starlet in at the deep end for contests against Arsenal and West Ham United at the start of 2022, owing to a backlog of injury issues.
Whilst Bielsa was vocal in the fact he didn’t want to fast-track Gray into the intense spotlight of the first team so soon, he also waxed lyrical about what the youngster could go on the achieve, even labelling him as a potential “elite player.”
“In spite of being so young, he can compete. But clearly his process has been altered to get to be an elite player. He has the resources to achieve it, he will achieve it. He is very, very strong mentally. He has the conditions, the qualities to play in every sector of the pitch.”
These were glowing words indeed from a man who is still revered at Elland Road to this day, with Gray going on to live up to the South American’s hype a matter of years after his departure.
Last campaign, the bold Leeds number 22 proved that he can play in many different areas on the pitch by lining up in the right-back spot 30 times under Farke, helping to address that problem area of the pitch well.
Games played
44
Goals scored
0
Assists
2
Touches*
54.4
Accurate passes*
30.9 (84%)
Ball recoveries*
4.5
Total duels won*
4.1
As well as excelling in defence, the table above also shows off his assuredness on the ball that made him another body Farke could rely on in midfield, with these top-notch performances in such a demanding division not going unnoticed.
Noted as being “superb” by former Leeds player Jon Newsome during his breakthrough campaign, promotion agonisingly passing Leeds by would ultimately lead to Gray upping and leaving his boyhood employers to the widespread dismay of the Elland Road masses.
Spurs would pick up the Leeds boy wonder for a hefty £40m, with Leeds then going after Jayden Bogle to fill the Gray-shaped hole at right-back, whilst also shrewdly acquiring Ao Tanaka and Joe Rothwell to boost numbers centrally.
Therefore, Farke and Co will feel pleased that they managed to play a starting role in Gray’s upward trajectory – alongside also gaining £40m for an academy-produced talent – as the 18-year-old now impresses Postecoglou in his new surroundings.
First Impressions
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Archie Gray's time at Spurs so far
Despite only starting two games to date in the Premier League so far, the 6 foot 2 starlet is still managing to leave his impression on his new fanbase.
He is again showing off his likeable versatility that made him a first-team regular for the Whites, with Gray surprisingly thrown in at centre-back last time out versus Southampton.
Minutes played
90
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
102
Accurate passes
91/94 (97%)
Total duels won
2/2
He would walk off the St. Mary’s turf at the end happy with his individual showing, even if it was a quiet night for him at the back in the 5-0 win, with only three of his passes misplaced in what was a comfortable and composed display from him in an unfamiliar position.
If he can continue to impress when given chances in the senior mix at Spurs, the sky does really feel like it could be the limit for Gray as he goes about living up to Bielsa’s previous elite billing.
Leeds would have loved to have had Gray around for far longer, but this sale hasn’t derailed their promotion chances thankfully, as Farke and Co strive to jump up to the Premier League to face off against their ex-star in 2025.
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