Tottenham Hotspur may well have just pulled off the signing of the next Gareth Bale.
With the transfer window nearly a month old, things had been quiet in North London for Tottenham Hotspur with there being little news of any reported incomings.
HITC had reported that they enquired to West Ham United over the availability of Jarrod Bowen but the Hammers quoted Spurs a price understood to be in the region of £150 million.
However, Spurs pulled off a key signing over the weekend and it is already, despite there being two months left of the transfer window, one of the best signings made in the Premier League. this summer.
Spurs’ latest signing could be their own Gareth Bale
Spurs completed the signing of Leeds United midfielder Archie Gray with the 18-year-old set to play a key role under Ange Postecoglou.
For a brief time, it appeared that Thomas Frank’s Brentford had won the race for the Leeds midfielder, who the Yorkshire club had accepted would be moving on due to a release clause in his contract.
However, Spurs intervened and, following conversations with Postecoglou, the teenager was understood to be swayed and was convinced of a move to North London.
Whilst Spurs have been quiet so far in the transfer market, the signing of Gray could well prove to be one of the best signings made by the club in a long time.
Perhaps a signing like this has not been seen since Spurs nipped in ahead of Manchester United to sign a Southampton teenager by the name of Gareth Bale.
Whilst comparing one of the game’s greats in Bale to Gray, who is still 18 years of age, leaves the teenager with plenty left to accomplish, the similarities, in terms of their trajectories, are certainly there.
Bale and Gray comparisons make a lot of sense
Bale was certainly an exciting prospect on the South Coast and was heavily linked with Sir Alex Ferguson’s United before the Lilywhites swooped in.
According to a report from The Athletic, Ferguson met with Bale and made an offer of £4 million for the Welshman but Southampton, probably rightly, said ‘no way’.
Whilst United dawdled, Spurs swooped in for Bale, who was certainly a versatile performer in his early days, and the same can be said of Gray.
Moving from a Championship club to the Premier League is certainly not rare but Bale and Gray share more than that.
The teenager played the majority of last season at right-back but can step into midfield and, you would think, as he gets older, he will add the maturity to his game needed to flourish higher up the pitch.
This, again, is very similar to Bale’s career trajectory as he began at Tottenham as a left-back, before venturing further up the pitch to devastating effect.
The Englishman was described as ‘excellent‘ for Daniel Farke’s side after a win against Norwich, playing at right-back and this signing for Spurs could turn out to be more than excellent if they utilise the teenager correctly.
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