Revealed: Tottenham beat Manchester City to the signing of Leeds United star

Ange Postecoglou’s plans at Tottenham for one of England’s best talents were enough to fend off competition from Manchester City last summer, it has been revealed.

The Premier League champions are often deemed as unbeatable both on and off the pitch, and their offering to up and coming talents from across the globe is more than likely to sway the thinking of players when approached.

The last few seasons have proven that to be the case, with now-Borussia Dortmund right-back Yan Couto a primary example of such a fact, with Manchester City having beaten competition from both Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona for the Brazil international.

City have found plenty of success in South America for now-globally acclaimed talents too, with the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Claudio Echeverri joining the Manchester City operation before going on to continue their careers elsewhere after trophy-laden spells at the Etihad.

But one player opted to turn his head away from Manchester City transfer interest, with a new report revealing the inside story behind Tottenham’s ultimately successful hunt for Durham-born Archie Gray.

That is according to the information of MailSport’s Sami Mokbel, who has revealed that Spurs beat transfer competition from the Premier League champions during the last summer transfer window for the then-Leeds United star.

It is revealed that the 18-year-old held talks with the Etihad Stadium club over a potential move, with a switch to Manchester City and the opportunity to work under manager Pep Guardiola described as an ‘obvious attraction’ to the player.

However, MailSport’s report quotes ‘sources close to the deal’ who have revealed that Spurs’ guarantee to both Archie Gray and his family that he would become an active member of Ange Postecoglou’s squad was ‘the deciding factor’ in choosing London over Manchester.

From the side of Manchester City and how they approached talks, the report reveals that Etihad officials were honest with Gray as they told him he would arrive as more of a ‘development player’ rather than an immediate first-team member.

Some onlookers of Manchester City’s performances this season, and particularly during their last 11 matches across all competitions, would claim that Archie Gray would have been an ideal solution for Pep Guardiola.

The squad of the Etihad Stadium club has been heavily depleted in the midfield ranks at various times during the ongoing campaign, and the performances of Kyle Walker have been far from impressive.

As such, it is widely believed that Manchester City recruitment chiefs will turn to the January transfer window for new faces, and some sources have even indicated that Joshua Kimmich could emerge as a target given his flexibility across numerous positions.