De Zerbi doesn’t rate him: Spurs’ “future captain” may not start again this season

Now, Tottenham Hotspur have the momentum in the Premier League relegation battle.

Still tussling for safety with London rivals West Ham United, Spurs have won back-to-back games under Roberto De Zerbi, belying their injury-ravaged conundrum with displays of fresh confidence and inspiration.

Defensively, Spurs have been much stronger in recent weeks, conceding only 1.84 xG across their past three matches. Their wasted attack have found something deep within themselves and are now leading the charge in spite of so many injuries.

But it’s the midfield that has fuelled this late-season resurgence, the likes of Conor Gallagher, Joao Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur coming up trumps.

How De Zerbi has fixed Spurs’ midfield

Tottenham’s resurgence stems from the centre. Too often this season, the Spurs midfield has been too easy to play through, as soft as butter left out of the fridge.

In possession, they have been equally stodgy, and even though Xavi Simons has joined the lengthy infirmary, this is a team who look more coherent and together. Against Aston Villa, during that priceless win, this certainly looked the case.

Over the past few weeks, Tottenham have reduced their xGA, which basically means that they are limiting the chances opponents receive against them.

Gallagher’s all-action midfield play has helped, but Bentancur’s tempo-setting quality has been the key, the Uruguayan returning from an injury that started in January with more fluency than he had beforehand in Thomas Frank’s system, such as it was.

Palhinha, 30 and on loan from Bayern Munich, has been excellent all year, winning 5.6 duels per game at a success rate of 61%. For a midfield anchor, at the heart of angry traffic, this is impressive.

Injuries, injuries, injuries. Tottenham have struggled for creativity all season, but so many setbacks have precluded the kind of expansive play that other Premier League rivals have removed themselves from by choice this season.

Gallagher and Bentancur and Palhinha are an industrious and effective mix, and they might just keep the Lilywhites safe. This has come at the expense of another valuable Spurs star, though.

Spurs’ “future captain” can’t start again in 25/26

The future is bright for Tottenham, and while he’s struggling for minutes under De Zerbi’s wing, Archie Gray has been touted for big things in north London, even projected to be a potential “future Tottenham captain” by the one and only Harry Redknapp.

The young midfielder has been put through the wringer in the two years he has been at Tottenham. He joined from Leeds United for £30m, aged 18, and though he was awarded a Europa League gold medal last year, domestic form has been brutal for the Londoners.

Now, after being among the most important players for Ange Postecoglou, Frank and Igor Tudor, Gray has been benched for Spurs’ past three Premier League matches, and with so much on the line, it must stay that way until the start of next season.

This is an issue of physicality. De Zerbi’s first match in charge, defeat against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, was a tough one, and Gray was hooked after the hour mark.

The 20-year-old has only won 35% of his duels in the Premier League this season, and against the Black Cats, he did not even make a single challenge.

The former Leeds United prodigy remains a top talent and someone who could play a big role over the coming years, but De Zerbi is right to have removed him from the starting line-up now that Bentancur is back and Gallagher is playing well.

Part of the problem for Gray has been the insistence of a succession of managers for him to play all across the park. The youngster’s tactical dynamism is impressive, but it may have been disruptive for the flow of his development, especially when considering how heavily Spurs have been battered by the events of the campaign.

De Zerbi has hit a winning formula at Tottenham, and it’s no coincidence that he has decided against starting Gray after that tough first fixture of his tenure.

Gray is technical and tenacious, but he might not be physical enough to withstand the pressures of this late-stage relegation dogfight. Instead, De Zerbi has strung up a midfield trio who pack a considerable punch, and it may well be what gets them over the finish line.