Hotspur HQ

Thomas Frank's utilisation of Xavi Simons has come under scrutiny, with the Dane fatefully opting to start Spurs' most creative available player on the bench against Fulham.

Xavi has endured a slow start to life in north London, with the Dutchman failing to notch a single Premier League goal contribution after he teed up Pape Matar Sarr on his debut against West Ham United.

His best performance arrived in the emphatic Champions League win over Copenhagen, and Frank gave Xavi the chance to build on that showing against Manchester United a few days later.

Since the November international break, though, the former RB Leipzig star has been reduced to cameo roles off the bench. Frank's plans for the North London Derby and daunting trip to Paris Saint-Germain were predicated on principles that rendered the crafty playmaker surplus to requirements.

However, the vast majority expected Xavi to come back into the XI for Fulham's visit on Saturday night. Instead, Frank opted for a similar approach from their midweek defeat in Paris, which provided positives, no doubt, but the Dane's team selection once again came back to bite him, and former Tottenham defender Michael Dawson has called the manager out.

Michael Dawson believes Thomas Frank is mishandling Xavi Simons

We're only a few months into his Tottenham career, and perhaps we shouldn't expect Xavi to be purring right away. Frank has discussed the player's need to adapt and adjust to a different environment, and his recent selection calls suggest he's trying to put Xavi out of the limelight.

I can somewhat understand his exclusions for the Arsenal and PSG games, but his omission at the weekend was just flat out silly. Once again, Spurs were found wanting on home soil. Frank's cross-heavy approach simply didn't come off, and we were subject to another wretched watching experience.

He hasn't hit the ground running, but there have been glimpses from Xavi that suggest he could really help out a side so devoid of invention and craft, despite the manager's primitive approach that is failing to maximise his skillset.

While Frank has spoken almost exclusively positively about Xavi's development since joining the club, he currently isn't giving the 23-year-old much of a chance to find his flow. And Dawson pointed that out after his 31-minute cameo.

“For a player to get confidence and belief, you have to play consistently," Daws said.

Frank seemed to have worked it out, starting Xavi in five of the six games before the November break, and we saw genuine improvement from the Dutchman in the Copenhagen win. It seemed like he may have been hitting his stride despite the tactical issues around him, and he scored for the Netherlands against Lithuania, too.

He must've returned to N17 in high spirits, confident that he'd make the difference in two significant upcoming games, but Frank instead picked supposed duel-winners and midfield engines in favour of guile and craft.

The Dane's working with a talent so bright he could emerge as his jewel in the crown, but too much tinkering has prevented Xavi from developing a groove, and Spurs are suffering as a result.

Pedro Porro took to social media to explain his shenanigans after a horrific home defeat to Fulham on Saturday night.

Regarded as a must-win for Thomas Frank after back-to-back defeats, Spurs laughably found themselves 2-0 down inside a few minutes and were unable to mount a comeback despite Mohammed Kudus' strike at the start of the second-half.

Once again, Frank's side struggled to inspire a home faithful that's becoming increasingly restless, with extortionate ticket prices only exacerbating their exasperation at the current ongoings in north London.

For the most part, the Lilywhites have been a torrid watch this season, and strong concerns remain over the scalability of Frank's ideas, having worked wonders at Brentford. Spurs, right now, are a stodgy, cross-heavy mess bereft of the defensive security Frank believed he was installing.

Key to the manager's approach is right-back Pedro Porro, one of few standout technicians at Frank's disposal. However, Porro has been out of sorts in recent weeks, especially in possession. His delivery from the right has been erratic at best, and his antics were the main talking point from a tense post-match atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Relationship between Spurs players and fans is at its lowest

Porro initially stormed past Frank after the final whistle blew, but returned to the field to seemingly have a go at teammate Lucas Bergvall, who was in the centre circle applauding those that remained in the ground.

The reason for Porro's outburst wasn't initially clear, but he provided an explantion on Instagram the morning after: "Football is emotions," his story caption started, "In Football, as in life, there can always be mistakes, what in will not tolerate is hearing the disrespect from the fan to my teammates, hence my frustration at the end of the game.

"And we will get up we remind you 6 months ago, everything was so bad, and in the end is not how it begins but how it ends. To the true Spurs fan, I love you."

Aristotle-like.

Anyway, I'd love to know who this singular fan is. There's only one of us?

Porro was clearly peeved by the dissent shown by the crowd towards Saturday's performance, but he perhaps took most offence to the boos that Guglielmo Vicario was subject to immediately after his woeful mistake that allowed Fulham to take a 2-0 lead. Thomas Frank chimed in, too, perhaps unwisely in the current climate, but he had to back his goalkeeper.

I've never been one for booing. I don't see what good it does, but supporters are paying a lot to endure a product that's currently failing to deliver on any sort of level. Discontent is to be expected. That's sport!

Still, it's all so bleak at Tottenham right now. Frank was a great unifier at Brentford, but he has a huge job on his hands if he's to restore the connection between this group of players and those who follow them so intimately. The relationship is creaking, and I can hope Saturday was the final deterioration.

I probably said that after Chelsea.

What Tottenham Hotspur produced in front of their home fans on Saturday night against local rivals Fulham was, once again, simply inexcusable. And with inexucsable loss after inexcusable loss stacking up in the very early reign of manager Thomas Frank, Spurs supporters are left with a very unsettling feeling that, at no point thus far after the first few purple patch games, has Frank given them a tangible sense that he is the guy to lead this franchise to its next chapter.

Tottenham have been laughable in several important Premier League fixtures this season, including this one. They surrendered two rapid fire goals in the first 10 minutes and, at no point looked like they were going to come back in it. The fact that the scoreline was just 2-1 was down to luck more than anything, and the individual brilliance of Lucas Bergvall and Mohammed Kudus to produce something of quality out of sheer nothingness.

In truth, there was only one player who looked like a true star for Tottenham in this defeat, and center back Micky van de Ven surely has to be wondering somewhere in the back of his mind just what on earth he is doing out there.

Micky van de Ven is ready for the elite

As the world's best young center backs get eyed up by the elite clubs in Europe, the 24 year old Van de Ven may soon be growing weary of being the man amongst boys and a leader of players who should be more his senior. But when you have Pedro Porro, Guglielmo Vicario, and Djed Spence acting like petulant children and playing like rubbish in games of importance, cleaning up their messes can become grating.

While Tottenham eye up a fat new contract to keep the former Wolfsburg man appeased at the wreckage that is the current N17 under Frank's management, they have to be honest with themselves and worry that, somewhere underneath the surface, they are driving Van de Ven away by their sheer incompetence.

There is no club on this planet that would not accept Van de Ven as a transfer. Even the mighty Real Madrid would pray for a center back as technical, fast, athletic, strong, and personable as Van de Ven. He is a truly special player whom Spurs cannot for a second take for granted, and as Spurs failed Harry Kane and Son Heung-min for years in their primes, they must push for better as a club for playres like Van de Ven who are their true future.

This simply cannot happen. For at least the fifth time this season alone, Guglielmo Vicario made a costly error for Tottenham Hotspur in an eventual loss to an inferior opponent, as Spurs surrendered two goals within 10 minutes, with VIcario completely getting caught out like a bumbling fool to concede a goal that ended up effectively dooming Spurs to defeat.

Tottenham have now lost back to back games in the Premier League to Arsenal and Fulham in embarrassing fashion, and while Thomas Frank is a far bigger villain in this story, Spurs are in a sore spot right now and have more than enough room to spread the blame around.

While Vicario is a talented goalkeeper with cat like reflexes who can single handedly keep Spurs in games, as he did against Bournemouth and Monaco this season alone, when you add it up, he's had more games where he as cost Spurs points with mistakes than he has had points earned for Spurs with those very saves.

Guglielmo Vicario has the wrong mentality

Like so many other players on Tottenham, as well as the new coach, Vicario has the mentality of a bottom feeder club. He plays like he did at Empoli. He lacks focus, he is more concerned with throwing himself wildly at shots for the highlight reel, and he must have no interest in the basics, because at his age, it is simply inexcusable for him to be making this many fundamental errors that screw his team over completely.

Tottenham fans have not felt safe with Vicario in goal, regardless of his raw talent or highlight reels. They don't feel safe because he flails at crosses, he has no security on the ball, he runs out of his goal like a headless chicken, and when he makes mistakes, he repeats them. He never learns from them. If anything, he tries to throw his teammates under the bus by immediately yelling at everyone around him instead of saying "My bad" and taking accountability for his errors.

Sure, he'll apologize to the fans after the game after roundly being booed so he can look like the good guy. But on the pitch? To his teammates? Vicario acts like a relegation goalkeeper, which is his background from Empoli. He has to be the hero making the big stops. And if he isn't doing that and he makes an error, it's everyone else's fault.

That's not how the best goalkeepers at the real Premier League title contenders act, and if Spurs want to finally reach that level, they have to be ruthless when planning their future. There are bigger fish to fry than Vicario, but, deep down, Spurs fan know as important as he can be when things are going good, goalkeepers and leaders are defined by how they are when things aren't. And when things aren't, Vicario is a problem.

Another game, another Xavi SImons snub. At this point, Thomas Frank's treatment of the biggest Tottenham Hotspur signing of the summer 2025 transfer window is bordering on managerial malpractice, and as Spurs continue to lose games and look like a unit bereft of any productive attacking ideas, Frank's almost personal vendetta against the Dutchman looks increasingly ridiculous.

Tottenham were beyond hopeless against Arsenal last weekend without Simons in the starting lineup, and if you take out the fact that Randal Kolo Muani contributed to literally every single one of the three goals Tottenham scored in their 5-3 loss to PSG on Wednesday night, they weren't all that much better at creating chances without him again in the Champions League, too.

So when Frank left Simons out of the starting lineup entirely yet again on Saturday night in what was obviously a must win fixture against Fulham in the Premier League return after the North London Derby debacle, you could hear the collective groan from the Spurs supporters scrolling social media as they saw that news.

Tottenham aren't any better without Xavi Simons

Predictably, Tottenham were dreadful without Simons. Aside from Pedro Porro spamming useless crosses and Mohammed Kudus practically falling over himself by doing too much in a game with his worst West Ham tendencies, the lone Lucas Bergvall assist was the only real moment of creative brililance from this Tottenham team.

Spurs are clearly not better without Simons in the starting lineup. Yes, Simons has been disappointing compared to his price tag and the quality he showed at RB Leipzig and PSV before this big move to Spurs, which he chose over London rivals Chelsea.

And you have to wonder if he is regretting that decision at this point as Frank either starts him in an isolated role where he has no prayer of succeeding or simply eschews him without explanation entirely. Frank has no idea how to manage an elite team or how to come up with creative attacking solutions within a structure, and him simply giving up on Simons is a very biting sign of his own limitations.

On paper, Tottenham Hotspur right back Pedro Porro should be one of the best players in the Premier League at his position, and, therefore, an invaluable player to Spurs. He should be considered one of the top, top players in the league, and while he has all the tools on both ends of the pitch and is a nailed on starter for Spurs, it never feels like he is accepted as a top class player.

And that's because there is always something missing with Pedro. He works hard, he wins the ball, he puts in crosses, he creates chances, but at the end of the day, he is a regular starter on a losing team and never has the same importance in games as the true core of Tottenham players like Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.

In Saturday's 2-1 loss to Fulham, Porro proved why Tottenham fans just can't trust him as a core player or consider him anywhere near world class, even if he is a very talented player and statistically a great right back.

Pedro Porro is a stat padder

Because, once again, Porro had the statistics. He had three key passes, three tackles won, and three interceptions for Tottenham. And what did those statistics mean for Tottenham on Saturday night against Fulham? Absolutely nothing. They were empty calories and emblematic of Porro's playing style. Selfish, focused on his own numbers, and with no regard for the team.

Porro is a player who makes basic positional errors and sacrifices stability tactically in order to win the ball to pad his stats. He focuses more on spamming crosses instead of focusing on precision or waiting until there is someone available to receive in the box. And his shots from outside the box? They are basically a gift to the opposition, not even worth trying.

Compounding all of that, Porro has a serious attitude problem. After a game in which he had 3 of 16 accurate crosses and made defensive lapse after defensive lapse off the ball, he decided to throw a tantrum and make Lucas Bergvall a target of his ire. Bergvall, who has far more talent and team spirit than Porro, actually played a decent game and was interacting like a normal, reasonable person with the fans after a tough loss. Porro decided to scream at him and hurry down the tunnel like a petulant child.

Mad about a loss? That's perfectly fine. Yelling at a young star a few years your junior? Unacceptable and a clear sign that Porro is not a leader. At the age of 26, you have to expect more maturity from Porro, but immaturity is exactly what Spurs have come to expect from the Spanish international, whose stat padding over the last couple of seasons has belied the fact that he is a very average player with the ego and attitude of a Zlatan Ibrahimovic or Cristiano Ronaldo.

The fallout from Tottenham Hotspur's latest entirely unacceptable loss has yet to truly conclude, and things figure to reach a boiling point soon as Thomas Frank continues to antagonize fans with poor results on the pitch and even more cowardly football that is simply not what Spurs supporters have come to expect from their teams.

Compounding matters is Frank's bizarre, passive aggressive attitude at press conferences that strike a level of obliviousness that is concerning and runs counter to the style of manager that usually succeeds at a bigger club like Tottenham - as opposed to, ahem, a mid table side that Frank is more accustomed to managing.

Following last weekend's humiliating 4-1 North London Derby vs. Arsenal, Frank was stunned again by a London rival. Spurs were down 2-0 within 10 minutes to Fulham at home and never looked like getting back into the game, creating a paltry 0.01 xG in the first half - an indictment of how woeful Frank's attacking tactics have been.

Thomas Frank is coming off clueless

During the game, the entire team, particularly Frank, were serenaded with boos, with goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario specifically targeted after yet another inexcusable individual error to effectively doom Spurs to a loss right as the game was getting under way.

Frank was well within his right to defend his veteran goalkeeper, but the way in which he did it will not go over well with Tottenham supporters at all. The manager said to the fans, via The Spurs Web, "That's not a true Spurs fan".

Now that will absolutely make Spurs fans blood boil. The people in the crowd haven't necessarily been the most supportive this season, true, but they are also working people who pay hard earned money to watch their team play and have understandably grown tired wtih a manager and group of players who make the same basic errors over and over again.

They booed Vicario out of frustration with a player who has made repeated mistakes and yet immediately yells at his own teammates as his first reaction. And they booed Vicario as part of a collective response and rebellion against a manager and team that has continually let them down to the point where a feeling of apathy feels almost inevitable at this point.

Who on earth is Frank, a new comer from Brentford with no real coaching pedigree to speak of, to say who is or isn't a true Tottenham fan? How can a failing manager be so oblivious as to adjudicate which paying members of the audience are valid or not? The more Frank opens his mouth, the more clueless he sounds at this point.

Tottenham started about as badly as could be imagined. The defending will rightly get criticism, but it is the lack of creativity yet again that is the major cause for concern.

GK Guglielmo Vicario

Produced the most memorable moment of the match but not for the reasons the home fans wanted. Vicario did not do well with the first goal but at least can point to a deflection. The second is unexplainable. Coming for a through ball and clearing into the stands is common for keepers and has been regularly, long since the phrase “sweeper keeper” was fashionable.

Vicario typically does this, too. Today, with us already 1-0 down he decided to try something different, and it did not go well. Â Taking a touch while well out of his goal and under pressure, shielding the ball, and then scuffing a clearance along the ground was clearly not in the plan. However, given the multiple opportunities Vicario had to clear, it is difficult to understand what the aim was. Inevitably the ball ended up chipped back into the empty net from long range. Good finish from Harry Wilson but it was a gift. Vicario did not have much to do in the second half, and did not make another error, but had done enough in the first to put us up against it. Â Rating: 2

RB Pedro Porro

The team as a whole struggled to pass today, but Porro’s crossing was extremely poor.  This has become a theme in recent weeks and is concerning given it is usually a strength. Time after time, Porro found Fulham players with his delivery. Was beaten easily on the right side for the first goal. Was also caught out midway through the first half as his indecision on a long ball allowed Samuel Chukwueze in on goal. Only a great Micky van de Ven tackle stopped him making it 3-0. Plenty of effort as usual from Porro, and he created a couple of chances in the second half, but we lose so much when his attacking play is struggling that we need a return to form quickly. Rating: 3

LB Destiny Udogie

Although he had more success than Porro on the other side when coming forward, this was not Udogie’s greatest game. Often had the right idea and was in good positions but a poor touch let him down. Unusual for Udogie who usually complements our attack well on the left. Thomas Frank may need to decide on which two of our three full backs will start consistently as it seems the frequent rotation is not helping and instead contributing to disjointed performances in these areas. Rating: 4

CB Kevin Danso

In for the suspended Christian Romero, Danso started slowly along with the rest of the team. Needed communication with Micky van de Ven when Vicario raced out and did not clear the ball for Harry Wilson’s goal. Seeing an empty net and yet neither Danso or van de Ven moved back onto the line was an error and we were punished when the obvious long chip sailed over their heads and in. In the second half he defended well enough but was not quick enough on the ball to help instigate attacks. Rating: 4

CB Micky van de Ven

Like Danso, Micky should have taken charge of the situation before the second goal and organized himself or Danso to cover the goal. Apart from that he played well, including an amazing tackle on Samuel Chukwueze  to prevent a certain third Fulham goal. Also tried to inject some drive into our attacks in the second half though too often his positive runs ended up with his teammates passing the ball backwards. A frustrating day for one of our best players. Rating: 6

CM João Palhinha

Playing against his former side, Palhinha was not as effective defensively as usual. Seemed to be caught out of position more often than is typical. Put in challenges when needed but offered little when we were attacking and slowed the game down too much which suited Fulham. After a great start to life at Spurs, Palhinha has had a downturn in performance for the last few weeks. Another player we need back on form. Rating: 4

CM Archie Gray

Perhaps a surprise inclusion but deserved after his performance in midweek. I’m not convinced the club know Archie Gray’s best position but there is potential in central midfield. Did show more urgency than Palhinha and was one of the few in the first half who was trying something different. Very little came off for him unfortunately and, while he will get other chances, starting Gray in midfield when we are struggling so much is not proving effective. Rating: 5

RW Mohammed Kudus

Another for whom very little seemed to go right for the first hour. Kudus overhit several crosses and could not take defenders on as he usually does. Definitely needed the goal and took it very well when the chance came. Improved after the goal for the final 30 minutes and was unlucky with some other through balls and runs, including a corner that almost led to a Bergvall equalizer. A fantastic piece of skill on 70 minutes to volley the ball, control it, and then backheel to Bentancur had no impact on the game in the end but was at least something that got the fans up. A clear talent and we need to build attacks around him. Rating: 5

LW Lucas Bergvall

Although he struggled in the first half, we do look better when Bergvall plays. He brings intensity and energy and the ability to pick a pass. His passing particularly improved after the first half an hour and he played a good ball to set up Kudus for our only goal. Could have scored himself from a corner and I was surprised when he substituted. On a poor day all around, Bergvall was one of our better players. Rating: 6

CF Richarlison

After scoring 2 goals in his last 2 games, Richarlison deserved to start and I like playing two strikers. Richarlison’s link play and ability to hold the ball had improved in midweek against PSG as well, but today we saw familiar struggles in that area. Richarlison could not get involved as much and was substituted after an hour. Another frustrating game and our lack of attack is costing us on a regular basis now. Rating: 3

CF Randal Kolo Muani

 After getting off the mark in the Champions League, Muani did look sharper today. Our attacking play was still weak, but what few chances we did have seemed to come from Muani’s work. Was unlucky not to score in the second half and although there is more to come, it was good to see an improved performance today. Rating: 6

Substitutes: Xavi Simons, Mathys Tel, Wilson Odobert, Pape Matar Sarr, Rodrigo Bentancur

Thomas Frank’s substitutes could do little to change the flow of the game today. Sarr coming on was a good ideachrisbatty2000 although replacing Bergvall did not seem like the move to make. Sarr kept us moving in midfield and switched the ball quickly enough, though in general both him and Mathys Tel could not get too involved. Tel was only given a few minutes and is another where Thomas Frank seems unsure how best to use him.

Thomas Frank knew that he had to get things right on Saturday night in front of his own fans when Tottenham Hotspur returned to Premier League action for another London Derby against Fulham. And while a casual observer could have written this game off against the Cottagers as lesser in importance to the North London Derby that preceded it, given how badly Spurs were battered by Arsenal, the game against Fulham was, in fact, just as crucial in order to gauge Frank's response.

While Tottenham showed signs of improvement in a 5-3 loss to PSG - a game they were almost certain to lose anyway - Saturday's dismal showing against Fulham was a clear reminder that there is something very visibly broken about this Spurs side under Frank.

Yes, Frank did make a big adjustment, continuing his wise decision to start young midfielders Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray. But the rest of his ideas were horribly wrong. Fulham jumped out to a 2-0 lead within the first 10 minutes, and while you can say that Frank can't be blamed entirely for errors that the likes of Pedro Porro and Guglielmo Vicario were making, you can most definitely apportion a significant amount of the blame on him for a 0.01 xG in the first half against a mid table side.

Tottenham were horrid against Fulham

Frank benched Xavi Simons again. His team sucked. He got booed out of the building. Rinse and repeat. That's what it feels like every week in the Premier League, and after throwing Ange Postecoglou under the bus last week by stating he inherited a team that finished 17th in the league last season - as if that were any way to excuse a blowout loss in a North London Derby after a summer of notable transfer investment from Big Ange's squad - Frank now has to face the full wrath of the fans.

Judging by the raucous chorus of boos and the just as fervent criticisms flying wildly online, Frank has lost the fan base. That's what happens when you continually get pantsed by all the other teams in the city. Getting embarrassed by giants like Chelsea and Arsenal is bad enough, but getting pounded this badly by Fulham at home when you KNEW coming in that you had to win, well, that's a huge problem.

Tottenham have fired better coaches than Frank who were performing better at the time of their dismissals and didn't regret a single one of them. Not since Mauricio Pochettino have Spurs had a great manager, and as the likes of Frank pass through, the yearning for Poch becomes more and more wistful. Frank isn't out yet, but with the highs of the 3-0 over Manchester City well in the rearview mirror, the new manager is one more cataclysm away from the supposedly more ambitious Tottenham management kissing his behind ciao.

Thomas Frank has already played for silverware, travelled to the Etihad and overseen a North London Derby, yet a home game against Fulham has suddenly become the most significant fixture of his tenure so far.

The Dane has scuppered two huge opportunities to assert himself in N17 by overseeing victories, or at least admirable performances, in the pair of outings that matter most to the fanbase.

However, the brave, canny and courageous displays many believed Frank would facilitate when we encountered Chelsea and Arsenal were nowhere to be seen. Instead, Spurs produced the two worst attacking showings of the Premier League season so far, with the manager overemphasising the nullification of the opposition.

You don't quite get the feeling that Frank has left Brentford yet. The 52-year-old is still operating as if he's managing a club of, with all due respect, the Bees' aspirations. Now, their west London rivals, Fulham, have the chance to put serious pressure on the Dane when they visit N17 on Saturday night.

Clash with Fulham could be make or break for Tottenham boss

There's no overlooking just how chastening an experience last Sunday's North London Derby defeat was. Of course, Spurs were dire, but for some supporters, they came to a harrowing realisation that this Arsenal team may well do something special this season, having emerged as the Premier League's perpetual bridesmaids.

When we were meandering through our post-Mauricio Pochettino instant gratification identity crisis, the Gunners' woes supplied solace. Now, though, Mikel Arteta's side struggle to lose games of football, and that makes our current malaise much harder to stomach. For local supporters, the unbearable Gooner lurks with intent on piling on the misery, while the ubiquitous medium of social media means we're subject to the thoughts of those supporting our bitterest rivals from across the globe against our will.

Arsenal's success thrusts a feeling of impatience upon us, ironically so given the rebuild Arteta had to undergo in order to lift the Gunners into their current position.

The harsh reality is that Frank is unlikely to get the time that was afforded to Arteta, who coached through the bleakest part of his tenure while there we no supporters in stadia across the country due to Covid.

Frank is instead subject to fierce judgment from a home faithful that demands to be entertained, akin to the Romans who enjoyed days out at the Colosseum. The majority would be all too keen to deliver a thumbs down (if we were living in Ridley Scott's idea of gladiatorial times) in the manager's direction, with the primitive and insipid performances the Lilywhites have produced in N17 hardly worthy of mercy.

Spurs are still without a Premier League win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since the opening weekend of the season, and the failure to secure a second this weekend will undoubtedly feel like the end times.

The stars are aligning for a diabolical evening, with Fulham winless on the road, but a spirited showing in the week against Paris Saint-Germain should at least spark some optimism. Sure, it ended in a 5-3 defeat, but that felt like Frank at his best: adaptable and aggressive.

One-off ploys aren't sustainable, though, and the manager desperately needs to impose a style that ensures games such as Saturday night's duel aren't miserable slogs reliant upon variance pulling in our favour. His squad isn't perfect, but there's talent at his disposal that hasn't been maximised yet, with risk-aversion and apparent defensive security undermining the potential fun elements of this Tottenham team.

Playmakers haven't yet come to the fore, while youth has either been used sparingly or erroneously.

Still, there's no reason why the "intelligent" Frank can't evolve. He's been a disappointment so far, but the Dane deserves a little more time to at least attempt to put things right, and implement ideals that are capable of appeasing a fanbase that's seemingly never wanted to endure the "painful rebuild" Poch warned about all those years ago.