Archie Gray surely in line for Daniel Farke axe v West Brom after comments following Leeds United loss to Preston
After the high of hammering Ipswich Town, came the low of a disappointing reverse at Preston for Leeds United.
It seems remarkable that there were only three days between the 4-0 drubbing on second-place Ipswich on Saturday (23 December) and the 2-1 defeat at Deepdale (26 December).
The mood around Leeds was almost like a balloon being deflated, one huge step forward but then two frustrating ones taken back.
There were mitigating factors, of course, Illan Meslier’s red card might have been soft but it was certainly avoidable and meant Leeds were facing an uphill battle.
Even accounting for that, though, it was not a great outing and sadly young Archie Gray struggled more than most, especially against match-winner Liam Millar.
Comments from Daniel Farke after the game sort of summed it, with Phil Hay quoting them on X: “It was tough because Millar is a good player. I think (Gray) handled many situations well but if you’re involved in a crucial situation, Archie knows he should have closed him down quicker. Sometimes you learn most out of difficult days.
“I don’t want to blame Archie that much. I’d rather talk about our offensive game in the first half.”
Farke was never, ever going to throw a 17-year-old under the bus and nor should he, especially a 17-year-old who has been so consistently brilliant for Leeds this season and will be a huge star – hopefully at Elland Road for the foreseeable future.
But the German’s comments certainly hinted that he might be axed against West Brom on Friday (29 December) and, truth be told, it might not be the worst idea.
Gray score a lowly 5.8 from Sofascore, lower even than Meslier who was sent off. The versatile ace, playing right-back again, was dribbled past twice and won only three of his 13 duels.
He also lost possession of 15 occasions and had an accurate pass success rate of only 76 per cent.
This isn’t a suggestion that Gray needs a long spell out of the time, more a note to the fact a teenager is at some point going to feel the effects of a first season in the pro team.
Perhaps a little break in this congested festive period is what he needs. Luke Ayling come in for him or Djed Spence could move to the right and Junior Firpo in at left-back.
Whatever the solution, it certainly seems like the right time to give Gray a break.
In other Leeds United news, one Sky Sports pundit was blown away by footage on a Whites ace out on loan.