Archie Gray’s great uncle Eddie Gray names Tottenham star’s best position in message to Roberto De Zerbi

Eddie Gray believes great nephew Archie Gray needs to play as a central midfielder for Roberto De Zerbi to get the best out of him at Tottenham.

Spurs currently sit seventeenth in the Premier League, one point above the relegation zone.

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The club appointed Roberto De Zerbi on Tuesday, giving him just seven games to turn the Lillywhites season around.

Tottenham have not won a game in this calendar year and have failed to pick up three points in their last 13 Premier League matches.

However, one glimmer of optimism in a dreadful season for the north London club is the emergence of a leader in the youthful Archie Gray.

Last year, in his breakthrough campaign, the 20-year-old started all eight Europa League league-phase matches and featured in the final, which spurs inevitably won.

Additionally, he has represented England at U21 level and was named man of the match against Moldova U21s after he scoring in a 4-1 victory.

On talkSPORT Breakfast, Ally McCoist spoke to former Leeds and Scotland star Eddie Gray and he explained where he thinks is great-nephew’s best position is.

He said: “I know he’s one of the family but I must say that when I watch him play, he plays in a mature fashion.

“He doesn’t let things get to him and he keeps trying to do the right things and I hope that continues for him, he’s a level headed lad anyway.

“I think he will end up being a box-to-box midfielder, that’s where his strengths are because he’s a great runner with the ball and he gets forward with his pace and energy.

“I think he will end up as a central midfielder.”

New man at the helm

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In their push for survival, Igor Tudor left the club by mutual consent after only seven games in charge.

Tudor was drafted in to replace Thomas Frank, who was relieved of his duties after 38 games following poor results.

In terms of his overall win rate in all competitions, Tudor has the lowest percentage out of every Tottenham manager since 2014 at just 14 per cent.

With only a one point separating them from West Ham, who currently sit in the relegation zone, the new manager has only seven games to galvanize the team to retain their top flight status.

On the latest episode of talkSPORT’s Inside Spurs, Tottenham broadcasters Sonny Snelling and Ricky Sacks spoke about what reaction they expect from the new appointment.

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Sacks said: “Naturally when you get a new manager there’s the hope again, there’s someone new, it’s a new voice, it’s someone who can hopefully project some confidence into the squad.

“With De Zerbi, he won’t take any prisoners and there’s been a lot of criticism around this group of players. Are they even trying, are they doing enough, are they putting their bodies on the line?

“I just don’t think the new manager will stand for any sort of nonsense.

“You will have someone in there who will pick a team – even though there has been a decimation of the squad through injuries all season – that he believes will fight for the shirt and badge and hopefully give him something.

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“What you have to bear in mind for De Zerbi and even though it’s been suggested it’s [taking the Spurs job] just for a huge amount of money.

“He is putting his reputation on the line because Tottenham have never been relegated from the Premier League, our last relegation was in 1977.

“To have the stigma of being the Tottenham manager who gets relegated maybe that’s the reason he’s really had to weigh it up as an option.

“He would be the first man to hold that stigma so on that basis he has to be a brave man to step up to the challenge, you could even say an insane man.”