Det var våre to yngste vi var mest stolt av i går. Syns Leeds-Live oppsummerer det fint her;
The youngsters come of age (again)It feels like Archie Gray has come of age about seven times already this season, but this was a marked step up in opposition and he more than rose to the occasion. The 17-year-old, at his best, was running a game at Stamford Bridge against £100m-plus midfielders.
This wasn’t just pocketing a Bristol City winger at right-back or spraying some passes around the Championship, Gray was unflappable in the face of world-class midfielders ready to punish any missteps. As is the mark of any elite footballer, Gray constantly seemed to have time on the ball.
The teen was dictating play and dictating his team-mates, telling the likes of Junior Firpo where to be. Gray was strolling around Stamford Bridge like he had been there his entire life. These are the kinds of nights, against this level of opposition, that will make the big boys really sit up and take notice.
This was a statement performance from Gray, but he wasn’t alone. Mateo Joseph is just 2,848 minutes behind his under-21s team-mate across all competitions this season and lacking in the same opportunities needed to catch the eye.
There was promise in his first start of the season at Home Park, in the last round, but this sequel in the capital was something else. Joseph’s finishes were the archetypal efforts of a traditional number nine.
The first, created by that man Gray’s 18-yard tackle, was lashed home unerringly in the box, while the second saw a perfectly-timed, back-post run into space before a steered header home. The vast majority of the population would have had all kinds of thoughts as Jaidon Anthony’s cross hung in the air, but Joseph didn’t hesitate.
Off the ball too, Joseph would hassle and harry Axel Disasi and Trevoh Chalobah, winning the ball back and leading the press from the front. It was a complete striker’s performance and a little something for Farke to think about as Leeds go into the run-in with Joel Piroe inconsistent and Patrick Bamford battling niggles.
https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/leeds-uniteds-biggest-transfer-fear-28724154
