'Superb': Jamie O'Hara left completely blown away by £30m Tottenham star in 1-0 win over Liverpool

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Lucas Bergvall emerged as the hero for Tottenham Hotspur as they sealed a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool.

Dominic Solanke held Ibrahima Konate off and found the free Tottenham midfielder inside the box, who took his goal in emphatic fashion to give the hosts a sizeable advantage heading into the second leg at Anfield.

Ange Postecoglou cut a frustrated figure after Pedro Porro fluffed his lines from close range in an attempt to lob the ball over Alisson Becker after he was dispossessed inside his own box by the energetic Bergvall.

However, Liverpool did not end up punishing Spurs, who were the better side on the balance of play.

Apart from Bergvall, Archie Gray, who was lauded by Postecoglou impressed once again as a makeshift centre-back.

Heung-min Son was asked to mentor Gray by Joe Rodon but it seems like the 18-year-old has a very wise on his shoulders, as demonstrated by his composed performance against Arne Slot’s side.

Archie Gray labelled “superb” in Tottenham’s win against Liverpool

The teenager played in the Lilywhites’ 6-3 defeat at the hands of the Reds and as a result, the former Leeds United starlet would have entered Wednesday’s contest knowing how full his hands were going to be.

But as Archie Gray stood tall to the challenge and was a rock at the back for Tottenham against Liverpool, Jamie O’Hara sang his praises on X.

The pundit wrote: “Archie gray has been superb”, followed by three ‘applause emojis.’

Gray was compared to Zinedine Zidane and while he still has plenty to accomplish before reaching the Frenchman’s level, the £30 million (BBC Sport) man’s astute reading of the game and technical quality against Liverpool highlighted his terrific potential.

Initially, Gray was starstruck at Tottenham but he really seems to have found his feet, despite being signed as a defensive midfielder and often being tasked to play out of position.

Archie Gray stats for Tottenham vs Liverpool

The statistics further highlight how well the Englishman played against Liverpool.

The fact that Gray was not even dribbled past once stands out, considering he was playing against a top-class striker like Diogo Jota for much of the game.

The highly-rated technician even had to go toe-to-toe with the likes of Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo and yet, he looked imperious.

If Tottenham manage to overcome Liverpool at Anfield in the second leg, Gray’s assured display will be heralded for years at N17.