MX23RW : Thursday, November 7 05:33:54| >> :120:26866:26866:

Tottenham shirt numbers Archie Gray could wear ahead of £40m transfer

Sports Mole takes a look at which shirt numbers Archie Gray could wear at Tottenham Hotspur ahead of his £40m move from Leeds United.

Tottenham Hotspur are thought to be on the brink of making their first signing of the summer window, as they close in on a deal to capture 18-year-old Leeds United protege Archie Gray.

The 2006-born starlet - who is effective as both a right-back and central midfielder - attracted the attention of Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City last season, where he made 52 appearances and played a crucial role in Leeds' run to the Championship playoff final.

However, a summer switch to a more modest destination in Brentford was seemingly on the cards at first, only for that £40m deal to collapse, allowing Tottenham to hijack their London rivals' move.

Gray's transfer to Tottenham is expected to fetch a similar fee, albeit through a slightly different method, as the 18-year-old is set to arrive for around £30m while the £10m-rated Joe Rodon heads back to Elland Road as part of the deal.

Here, Sports Mole takes a look at which shirt numbers Gray could take at Tottenham, where he will sign a six-year deal until 2030.


Leeds United's Archie Gray pictured in February 2024© Reuters

A frequent number swapper during his time in the Leeds United youth system, Gray spent the 2023-24 campaign as the Whites' number 22, although that jersey is currently in the possession of Brennan Johnson at Tottenham.

However, as both Richarlison (number nine) and Bryan Gil (number 11) are being tipped to leave in the current window, there is every chance that Johnson could be promoted to a higher number for the 2024-25 campaign, potentially opening the 22 for Gray to take.

That shirt has not traditionally been associated with celebrated names at Tottenham, although it was in Robbie Keane's possession for the 2002-03 season, while Vedran Corluka also donned it for a few years.

Alternatively, Gray might wish to take the '18' that he has worn for England's Under-21s, a shirt which currently bears Giovani Lo Celso's name at Tottenham, but it is surely only a matter of time before the out-of-favour Argentine leaves the club.

Should Gray indeed inherit Lo Celso's number 18 shirt, he would also be sporting the shirt that Harry Kane wore during his breakthrough 2014-15 campaign, prior to which it was donned by fellow Englishman Jermain Defoe.

Leeds United's Archie Gray celebrates after the match on December 23, 2023© Reuters

The 18-year-old has been no stranger to the iconic midfielder's '8' at youth level for club and country too, but Yves Bissouma holds that shirt at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and should not be giving it up anytime soon.

Alternatively, Gray could choose to go back to an old favourite - albeit an unorthodox one - with the number 63, a jersey he frequently wore for Leeds' Under-21s and one held by just three Spurs players in the past, most recently Jamie Donley.

In terms of available numbers, Gray could be bestowed with the traditional right-back's number two shirt - without a taker since Matt Doherty left the club - while 14, 15 and 19 have also been freed up by recent exits.

As Gray's arrival could trigger a couple of midfield departures, the 18-year-old could also have the choice of the number four - currently worn by Oliver Skipp - or Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's '5', although more senior players should be first in line for those shirts.

ID:547171:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect5904:
Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou pictured on December 23, 2023
Read Next:
Medical complete: Tottenham 'on brink' of agreeing £40m swap deal
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!