Merson raves over undroppable Tottenham star who ‘should keep returning stars out’

Former Arsenal star Paul Merson has raved over a versatile Tottenham star who he believes deserves to keep his place in the side at the expense of star names returning from injury.

Spurs’ season has been hit hard by injuries, particularly at the heart of defence, where Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have virtually been sidelined since early December, with the latter only making a fleeting appearance in the Europa League in that time.

That situation forced Ange Postecoglou to turn to the versatile Archie Gray, who normally plays central midfield or right-back, and the impressive 18-year-old has not looked back since.

Yes, Tottenham have had their struggles defensively but Gray has been pretty much flawless playing alongside the now injured Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies and January signing Kevin Danso.

However, both Romero and Ven de Ven are closing in on returns, alongside a host of other major players for Spurs as they look to end a tough season on a high.

Merson, though, believes that Gray has earned the right to keep his place in the side – no matter where he plays going forward.

Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “When all these players are fit, I hope Gray plays. I think he has been an absolute credit—the young lad.

“I mean, I don’t know him at all, but from a distance, he turns up every week, plays out of position, and plays in a struggling team at the moment with a worrying number of injuries—and yet he plays every week.

“He isn’t one of those who goes, ‘Hmm, you know what, I might sit this one out.’ But don’t get me wrong, there are players like that. Everybody will have played with players like that—when things aren’t going well, they step back.

“But he turns up every week. I hope he plays when everybody is fit because, honestly, the kid’s been an absolute credit—playing in a position that isn’t his, yet still showing up. Every single week.”

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Gray shows his value

For a young player who only made the jump up from the Championship this summer, Gray has featured extensively for Postecoglou’s men this season.

The former Leeds United youngster has played a total of 32 games, with 16 of those coming at centre-back, seven at right-back, five at left-back, and just two in midfield—his natural position. Indeed, he has only featured in central midfield for 29 minutes of the current campaign.

He was helped by Postecoglou playing him at centre-back during pre-season and he could continue there for the next couple of weeks, unless the Spurs boss opts for Davies alongside Danso instead.

The full-back positions have also received a boost with the return of Destiny Udogie, which might give Gray the chance to finally play in Tottenham’s engine room instead.

Spurs’ midfield has been incredibly inconsistent all season despite it being the least hardest hit by injuries, with the trio of Yves Bissouma, Pape Sarr and Rodrigo Bentancur all struggling to find their best form.

Fellow teenager Lucas Bergvall has shown flashes of his quality though, with many Spurs fans calling for a partnership of Gray and Bergvall going forward – a combination that could be just around the corner, once Gray is no longer needed at the back.

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