'Not with anything in my time as a manager': Sam Allardyce says Spurs have done something he'd never have imagined

Yesterday at 04:15 PM

Tottenham Hotspur may be having a difficult season but there are certainly some positives, such as the form of some of their youngsters.

For instance, Archie Gray has proven a revelation at Tottenham since moving from Leeds United last summer.

Spurs paid Leeds £30million to sign Gray and he is certainly showing signs of that fee being not only justified, but potentially becoming a bargain.

The 18-year-old has already made 25 competitive appearances for Ange Postecoglou’s side, of which 18 have been starts.

In addition, Gray has been doing amazingly well, despite also playing out of position – he has been featuring at centre-back of late.

Sam Allardyce, who managed Leeds when Gray was in the academy, shared what he’s now seeing from the Spurs starlet that he never imagined would happen.

READ MORE: Aaron Lennon predicts the two signings he thinks Tottenham could make in the January transfer window

Sam Allardyce stunned to see Tottenham gem Archie Gray playing at centre-back

Allardyce, speaking on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast, shared he never would have envisaged Gray playing as a centre-back.

He also spoke highly of the Gray family, with several of the Spurs gem’s relatives having enjoyed fruitful careers in the game.

"You’ve got to say this by the way, not in the memory of man would I ever have seen that lad playing centre-half,” said Allardyce.

“Not with anything in my time as a manager would I have thought, ‘is he playing centre-half?!’.”

Allardyce added: "Eddie still works at Leeds United and he's a fantastic advocate for the club, a fantastic guy. He’d be gutted that they sold him [Archie].

“It was a good move for him as a lad going to Tottenham. Obviously, Leeds needed the money but another Gray gracing the football pitch is great to see.”

Karl Robinson, Allardyce’s assistant at Leeds, also gave his thoughts on Gray, saying he’s “everything I love about football”.

"He [Gray] was a lot younger when we were there but you could see he was technically very good,” he said.

“I never saw him playing where he’s currently playing for Spurs but it shows you his personality, because his family is in the game, that he'd happily play in any position.

"He’s everything I love about football. He just wants to play and it doesn’t matter where.”

What Archie Gray thinks about playing out of position

Late last year, Gray admitted he isn’t bothered about where he plays on the pitch, so long as he gets minutes.

"No, I'm not really focusing on what position I am right now," he said.

"Look, this year and last year I'm more than happy to play anywhere just to get the minutes on the pitch.

"I just try to take every opportunity I get and just try to stay in the team.

"Like I said I've played central midfield since I was a young age… but I enjoy playing everywhere on the pitch and just getting the minutes."

Gray has received praise not only from Spurs fans, but neutral supporters have also been hailing Gray. Needless to say, he’s a star in the making.