Thomas on Archie: "He's made of the right character material we need here at Spurs" | OneFootball

Thomas Frank praised Archie Gray's resilience and said that the young midfielder 'shows a lot of quality' after his match winning goal and display at Palace.

Still only 19, Archie pounced from close range for the only goal of the game at Selhurst Park - reading the flight of the ball from Pedro Porro's deep corner headed back by Randal Kolo Muani and flicked on by Richarlison before nodding home.

The scenes of joy were quite a contrast to the despair he experienced when his mistake led to Forest's opening goal in our 3-0 loss at the City Ground on 14 December.

A fortnight on, he was celebrating his first goal in senior football and first for us in what was his 60th appearance in all competitions - tellingly, Thomas has started him in our last five matches.

Speaking to us afterwards, Thomas said of Archie: "He shows a lot of resilience, that young man. It hasn't been an easy first season for him in Spurs, and this season also, it hasn't been straightforward. So for him, keep going, he shows he's made of the right character material we need here at Spurs for players that can be very good for us both now and in the future."

Asked about Archie in his post-match press conference, Thomas added: "I think Archie is growing. He showed why he has a very good potential in many ways. It's another fine performance overall today.

"Talking about resilience, he made a mistake in the Nottingham game, played another good game against Liverpool, growing as a young man. He was alert. I loved that goal, because he was alert, he was seeing where the ball will land and he was ready on it."

Asked if Archie gives him a glimpse into the future of the team, Thomas replied: "Yes, I think so. I think he shows a lot of quality, he covers ground so well, he's excellent in the pressing game, the defensive transition, brilliant at closing down and good on the ball."