The week Gray turned 18 also saw him called into the England Under-21 squad for the first time and before that even happened the manager of the Three Lions’ senior team, Gareth Southgate, namechecked him as one of the country’s emerging midfield stars.
None of this will have come as any surprise to those who have followed Gray’s rise up through the England age-group teams, or his emergence as a 15-year-old Premier League substitute when Marcelo Bielsa was Leeds manager.
A pedigree like that – not to mention family ties which saw his dad, Andy, grandfather Frank and great uncle Eddie all play for Leeds – guarantee high expectations and even Farke is unprepared to talk them down.
“He is, without any doubt, one of the biggest talents in his age group in this country,” said the German, who gave the latest Gray his senior debut on the opening match of the season and has used him almost continually since.
“If you’re one of the biggest talents then you have the potential to reach everything.
“For Archie, yes, the sky is the limit.
“But it’s not about saying one day he will be there and one day he will be there.
“You have to live in the here and now because there are still many aspects where he can learn and improve.
“He has to develop a bit more and we’re working with him.
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“If he continues with this work ethic and professionalism, he has all the chance to reach everything that he wants.
“He has represented his country at youth level and he obviously has the potential to do it at a proper level with the mature Three Lions.”
It was Farke who gave the teenager his start in senior football, initially as a central midfielder – seemingly his best position – but more often over the winter as an auxiliary right-back. He is reluctant to take much credit, though.
“If there is someone who has to be credited it’s Archie himself because I’m not on the pitch,” he insisted.
“I can try and develop him and bring him close to the door but he has to make the step through it.
“All credit goes to him and if you want to mention other people then definitely his family because they gave him all the values, work ethic and professionalism.
“I met him less than one year ago and he was already built in his character.
“I tried to give him small details but the foundation was there with his family.
“All credit goes to his mother and father and also to the older generation of his family.
“All the praise just goes to Archie and his family.”
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