View: Ange must give 33% Tottenham player more time, looked 'Knackered' v Bayern Munich

Tottenham fans must remember that Archie Gray has taken a massive step up since arriving from Leeds United following a laboured display against Bayern Munich.

The 18-year-old was in Ange Postecoglou’s starting XI as the two clubs clashed at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Saturday 3 August, which saw Bayern take a 2-1 victory.

Postecoglou’s side were handed an opportunity to learn the Bundesliga club’s pressuring tactics first-hand, with Gabriel Vodivic giving them a lead very early on.

While Gray is normally a very confident player in the middle of the park, a match against one of the top teams in Europe looked to be too much of a step forward for the youngster.

He was one of the three players to be hooked at half-time, alongside Radu Dragusin and James Maddison, with journalist Alasdair Gold stating that he looked “knackered” on the pitch.

Writing for Football London on Saturday (3 August), Gold said: “Looked knackered at times, with his hands on his hips trying to catch his breath. Played a couple of off-target passes as he tried to get things moving from the number six role.

“It’s easy to forget that this is a whole new level of training for him and, especially in this heat, as Postecoglou has worked them hard.”

Archie Gray needs more time to adapt at Tottenham

Gray is clearly a very talented prospect, one that adapted to life at right-back due to injury issues at Elland Road last season, playing 44 league matches in the Championship.

However, with Postecoglou’s training regime, going hand-in-hand with playing some of the best teams in the world, the 18-year-old will not take like a duck to water as much as he did for the Whites.

That was evident in the clash against Bayern, having picked up a 5/10 rating, and leaving the field with a 73 per cent pass completion, only 16 touches in midfield, all while winning just 33 per cent of his ground duels [FotMob].

He was clearly struggling to keep up with the pace of the game, but that should not be a concern ahead of the new Premier League season.

Gray proved his capabilities against Premier League opposition last season when Leeds came up against Chelsea in the FA Cup, leading his team forward but narrowly missing out on the next round.

Against the Blues, he completed 93 per cent of his passes, partnering Ethan Ampadu in midfield, completed 67 per cent of his dribbles, made six recoveries and was involved in 11 ground duels [FotMob].

Having come up against the midfield duo of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo that night, fans just need to remain patient as the youngster gets to grips with life in North London.

In other Tottenham news, Mikey Moore is ready for first-team chances as Wayne Rooney comparison emerges.

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