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News
Robin Koch seriously impressed by Leeds youngster Archie Gray
Robin Koch that he has been really impressed with Archie Gray, and provided an insight into what it has been like to compete with the Leeds United starlet in training.
Gray is, once again, the talk of the town around Elland Road. For much of this season,. Gray was receiving a lot of attention for being the 15-year-old on Marcelo Bielsa’s bench as their injury problems worsened.
But he has proved just how special a talent he is this week. He came off the bench for the under-23s for their clash with Manchester United at Elland Road on Tuesday.
The 16-year-old helped win possession back in the build-up to their second goal. And he scored the third with a delicious finish from around 35 yards out.
Obviously, the expectations are high for Gray given he comes from Leeds royalty. But it is remarkable to see how settled he is in under-23 football already.
Of course, Leeds’ youngsters have worked closely with the first-team over the last few years. And with that, Gray has had a chance to show what he can do against some of the senior players.
Koch certainly suggested that he had been impressed with Gray when coming up against him on the training ground.
“Especially in murderball, when you marked him man to man, he’s really good with the ball,” .
“Already for his age, he has a really good feeling for the space. He’s quite advanced for his age in his vision as well. So yeah, a really good player.”
Gray can set sights on becoming U23 regular at Leeds over next year – and maybe, a first-team debut
Bielsa would have obviously not used Gray had injuries not decimated the squad earlier in the season. But it is telling that he was involved when the then-Leeds boss had so many other, older youngsters to promote.
It seems incredibly unlikely that Gray will make his first-team debut for Leeds this season. There is too much at stake for Jesse Marsch’s side.
Having said that, Gray will have his sights set on becoming a more regular fixture for the under-23s. That certainly does not look to be beyond him right now.
And maybe, once Leeds’ future is clear, perhaps he is one player that Marsch may be tempted to hand him an opportunity to at some stage.