The emergence of Archie Gray as a regular starter for Leeds United has been pleasing to see as the 17-year-old has nailed down a place in Daniel Farke's XI, with 31 league starts.

With zero first-team appearances prior to the current campaign, it was a bold move by the head coach to bring the youngster in to be a prominent senior performer.

It is one that has paid off for the Whites on the pitch as the England youth international has been an excellent operator throughout the season so far.

However, the bulk of his appearances have come at right-back – away from his natural position in central midfield – and Farke could now elevate Gray further by unleashing Connor Roberts in defence to free up the teenage gem to play in the middle of the park.

Connor Roberts' impressive attacking quality

The full-back was signed on loan from Premier League side Burnley on deadline day and has already offered a glimpse of the attacking quality he can provide from a right-back position.

He has produced one goal and one assist in five substitute appearances for Leeds in the Championship so far, with his assist coming in the form of an excellent cross along the six-yard box for Patrick Bamford against Plymouth on Saturday.

Last season, the 28-year-old dynamo racked up four goals and six assists in 39 starts for Burnley as they won the Championship title under Vincent Kompany.

This means that the Welsh defender, who The Athletic's Laurie Whitwell once claimed has "boundless energy", has been directly involved in 12 goals (five goals and seven assists) in 39 starts in the second tier since the start of the 2022/23 campaign.

He is an experienced operator at that level and could be a reliable option for Farke to call upon at right-back, which would then free up Gray to step into midfield, where his performances could improve.

The stats that show Gray could shine more in midfield

The 17-year-old dynamo was recently provided an opportunity to shine in the middle of the park against Chelsea in the FA Cup last week and won the Player of the Match, despite the Blues winning 3-2.

Gray came through the U21s as a central or attacking midfielder before being utilised at right-back by Farke, and his quality in his favoured role was on show at Stamford Bridge.

Pass accuracy

93%

84%

Duels won

6.0

4.5

Tackles won

2.0

2.3

Dribbles completed

Four

1.1

Key passes

One

0.5

Long ball accuracy

100%

36%

As you can see in the table above, the academy graduate thrived in midfield against the Premier League side as he outperformed his average output at right-back in the Championship in a number of key metrics, in and out of possession.

Whilst it was a small sample size, given that it was one game, it does provide a glimpse of what he could do with regular minutes in midfield in the league.

Gray could offer more on the ball, as a passer and a dribbler, and compete to win more duels to regain possession for his side out of possession, than he does at right-back.

Therefore, Farke could elevate the youngster's performances and make him even better by unleashing Roberts at right-back to bring the teenage starlet into midfield.