Roberto De Zerbi’s first job at Spurs is to make sure the club isn’t relegated, and the Italian has to build the squad around one star to beat the drop.
That player is Archie Gray. The midfielder has been one of few shining lights in an abysmal campaign for Spurs this season.
Gray has already proven he is the most versatile and reliable engine in this squad, logging over 1,300 minutes this season across multiple positions. In a De Zerbi system that demands technical bravery, Gray’s 85% passing accuracy and his ability to progress the ball makes him the perfect midfielder to initiate the transition from defence to attack.
The numbers, alongside his performances this season, suggest that Gray is more than just a future prospect. Despite Spurs’ struggles which sees them sitting 17th in the table, Gray’s defensive work rate is among the best in the division, recording 70 defensive contributions and a 77.8% tackle success rate this term.
If De Zerbi wants to fix a backline that has leaked goals all season, he needs to protect the defence with Gray’s energy and composure to ensure they stay clear of the bottom three.
The former Leeds player is known for his versatility, and this has perhaps been the downfall for some of De Zerbi’s predecessors. Thomas Frank seemed to prefer Gray in defence instead of giving him consistent chances in his more suitable position of central midfield.
The club have won four and only lost six Premier League games when Gray has played in the midfield. To put this into context, Spurs have only won seven games this season and have lost 15, so they are more successful with the Englishman in the middle of the park.
Spurs are in freefall currently and have been unable to rely on the experienced players you would expect, like Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, with both defenders being sent off in the Premier League over the last couple of months. They haven’t been able to always rely on star signing Xavi Simons in bailing them out at the other end either.
In these moments, Gray has been the one who has stepped up and, although the results haven’t been great, you can see that if Spurs are to get something out of a game then he will be involved, either defensively or offensively.
Since March, Gray has three assists in six appearances for Spurs and also enjoyed his time away with the England U21s, scoring against Moldova on Tuesday night.
With only seven league games left, many across the fan base and in the media are now predicting them to go down, and this pattern is replicated across new betting sites, who have given Spurs a 38% chance of being relegated.
One thing for certain is the fact that De Zerbi can’t just pick his squad on experience, he has to pick the players fighting to keep the club in the Premier League, and Archie Gray meets this criteria.
If De Zerbi builds his team around the midfielder, then there is no doubt that Spurs can stay up this season.
