Archie Gray, a Leeds United talent, has had an amazing debut season at Elland Road.
Last season, the indicators were present. At the age of sixteen, the talented Whites player was already representing the Under-21 team and being selected for senior matchday squads.
The 18-year-old has become one of the Championship’s best players and a vital member of Leeds this season.
Despite only making his Leeds debut this season, Gray has already made 41 appearances in competitive play for Daniel Farke’s team.
Furthermore, the youthful player has demonstrated his versatility by suiting up as a No. 10, defensive midfielder, central midfielder, and right back.
Now that the international break is well underway, Gray has achieved yet another significant professional milestone.
Additionally, the Leeds star beat a record that Alan Smith, a former Elland Road star, had previously held.
How did Archie Gray, a standout for Leeds United, break Alan Smith’s record?
In Baku’s Azersun Arena, Gray entered the game as a substitute for the England Under-21s against the Azerbaijani Under-21s in a European qualifying match.
The Leeds gem played as an inverted right-back when he replaced Sheffield United’s on-loan star James McAtee in the 83rd minute.
Five minutes later, Gray found himself on the scoreboard as Brooke Norton-Cuffy played him in.
With his goal, Gray becomes the youngest Leeds player to score for the England U21 team, according to Opta stat guy Jonny Cooper.
With his age of 18 years and 10 days, Gray has surpassed the record set by Alan Smith, who scored against Denmark in October 1999 at the age of 18 years and 345 days.
Gray is currently the fourth-youngest England U21s scorer as well. He is ahead of only Jude Bellingham, Theo Walcott, and Jamal Musiala, who were all 17 when they scored for the U21s.
That’s not bad company, and if the Leeds star keeps up his current pace, he very well may eventually catch up to those same superstars.
