The Mirror

At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the "Do Not Sell or Share my Data" button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions.

Thomas Frank's Arsenal controversy, Tottenham manager's wife and multi-million pound salary

Thomas Frank is under huge pressure for results as the former Brentford manager faces the sack at Tottenham Hotspur

FA Cup football has returned to our screens and Tottenham Hotspur have a tough task in round three against fellow Premier League side Aston Villa on Saturday at 5.45pm. Unai Emery's side are absolutely flying at the moment so Spurs will have a very difficult task, although they are on home turf.

At the helm for Tottenham is former Brentford manager Thomas Frank. He and his team have really struggled to hit form in the league this season and are 14th in the table with only seven wins from 21 games. The boss is under a lot of pressure despite only taking on the role last summer but he believes he has done enough to deserve more time in charge of the club.

Speaking ahead of the Villa game, Frank was asked about the recent struggles. He replied: "Put it this way, would we love to be higher in the table and have more points? 100 per cent. We work hard every single day to make sure we perform well. We want to land in the best possible position at the end of the season.

"We need to look at the FA Cup game, a good opportunity against Villa, a team who is flying in this moment in time. The tournament is very important for the fans, we won it eight times in our history. This is a tough spell, we will get through this."

Ahead of the cup clash, Mirror Football take a closer look at the man in charge of Spurs.

Arsenal cup controversy

Before kick-off against Bournemouth in mid-week, Frank was snapped holding a cup which was emblazoned with the team emblem of rivals Arsenal. For a man already under immense pressure, this didn't do the Dane any favours.

"I definitely did not notice it," said Frank after. "It would be completely stupid of me to take it if I knew. It's a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked about it. I would never do something that stupid. I think we're definitely going in the wrong direction if we need to worry about me having a cup with a logo of another club."

It was an unfortunate game for Spurs, with Bournemouth winning 3-2 thanks to goals from Evanilson, Eli Junior Kroupi and new Manchester City signing Antoine Semenyo.

Wife

Frank is married to Nanna Theil and she has been with him through thick and thin, according to The Athletic. In the early days of their romance, he juggled coaching duties with a psychology degree and when the couple became parents, a decision had to be made whether full-time coaching was the right option for the family going forward.

Nanna studied to become a psychologist and has also worked for the children's association. Teddy Hebo, chairman of Hvidovre, where Frank previously coached, says she is responsible for his success and has been his strongest supporter. She challenges him and when he "goes a bit wild", she brings him back down to earth.

Multi-million pound salary

When he first started coaching, Frank earned just £100 for his first job - now he is on a multi-million-pound deal with Spurs. It's reported that Frank takes home around £8m per year, which makes him the third-highest paid boss in the Premier League.

Frank, despite enduring a difficult period with Spurs right now, turned Brentford into Premier League regulars having joined in 2018.

Now he faces a tough challenge of digging Tottenham out of their current rut.

Tottenham captain Cristian Romero has been hit with a one-match ban following an incident in the closing stages of the 2-1 defeat to Liverpool in the Premier League

Cristian Romero has been slapped with a one-match ban after his conduct toward the match referee at the conclusion of Tottenham Hotspur's 2-1 loss to Liverpool last month. After being shown a second yellow card during injury time, the Spurs skipper was deemed to have 'acted improperly' towards referee John Brooks.

He has already sat out of one game due to the red card itself, missing Spurs' 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace in the Premier League at the end of December. Romero has now faced further punishment for his treatment of the referee, meaning he'll be absent from Saturday afternoon's FA Cup third round tie against Aston Villa.

An official statement from an FA spokesperson reads: "Cristian Romero has been sanctioned in relation to the Premier League fixture between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool on Saturday 20 December 2025.

"It was alleged that he acted improperly around the 93rd minute by failing to leave the field of play promptly and/or behaving in a confrontational and/or aggressive manner towards the referee.

"The defender subsequently admitted the charge, and an independent Regulatory Commission has now imposed a one-match suspension and £50,000 fine after a hearing. The Regulatory Commission's written reasons for these sanctions will be published in due course."

It comes as another blow to Thomas Frank and his side after a rocky few weeks at Tottenham. After some positive results at the start of his tenure, the new manager has struggled to unite the fanbase behind him, with performances lacking some spark and identity to get behind.

Audible boos and chants against the club have been heard from the stands in recent weeks, as the side sit 14th in the Premier League table. The in-fighting continued when Romero himself put out a statement on Instagram slamming some within the club for not helping the team and only talking when convenient.

"Apologies to all fans of you who follow us everywhere, who are always there and will continue to be," Romero wrote. "We are responsible, there’s no doubt about that. I am the first.

"But we will keep facing up to it and trying to turn the situation around, for ourselves and for the club. At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don't - as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well.

"We'll stay here, working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all together, is part of football. All together, it will be easier."

That statement had been edited, with it previously saying: "At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don't - as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies."

That followed a frustrating 3-2 defeat at Bournemouth in midweek, as a 95th-minute Antoine Semenyo strike was the latest dagger for Frank to endure. That wasn't helped by a gaffe from the Spurs manager that saw him drinking out of an Arsenal cup before kick-off, only inciting more frustration from the fanbase - though he later denied having any knowledge of how he ended up with the drink branded by their nearest rivals.

A cup run could help calm tensions around Tottenham, but Frank will have to get past a tricky test in Aston Villa without his club captain. That only adds to the availability problems that Spurs have, with injuries once again running rampant throughout the squad.

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has delivered a triple injury update, including Mohammed Kudus being ruled out until after the March international break with a quad issue

Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank has confirmed that Mohammed Kudus is set to be sidelined until after the March international break due to a quad injury.

The Ghanaian international went down off the ball during the weekend's 1-1 draw with Sunderland, with scans revealing the 25-year-old sustained damage to his quad. Frank also confirmed that Rodrigo Bentancur picked up a hamstring injury in Wednesday's 3-2 defeat to Bournemouth, whilst Lucas Bergvall is awaiting assessment after suffering a knock in the same match.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, the Spurs manager said: "Lucas is being assessed today. We'll know more later today with him.

"Same with Rodri. Rodri is a hamstring injury, looks like a bigger one. We don't know the extent yet.

"Kudus is a bigger one, to the tendon and quad, and don't expect him back until after the March international break.

"With Dejan Kulusevski, we know it's a complicated injury.

"If anyone can come back quicker it's Deki. The most important thing is to remove the pain in the knee and he got an injection 10 days ago and we'll know in 3-4 weeks whether that has settled and then he can get back on the grass."

Bentancur and Bergvall both started Wednesday's encounter at Bournemouth, but the Uruguayan was withdrawn with four minutes remaining, whilst the Swedish midfielder was taken off just before the hour mark.

Kudus, on the other hand, was forced to leave the pitch in the first half against Sunderland on Sunday and is expected to be sidelined until April.

The March international break commences on March 28, so Kudus might return for the match against Sunderland on April 11.

This means that Kudus is likely to miss Spurs' upcoming 13 matches, which include Premier League showdowns with Man City, Man United and Arsenal, as well as Champions League fixtures against Dortmund and Frankfurt.

In other news, James Maddison, Dominic Solanke and Destiny Udogie continue to receive treatment for their injuries.

Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr are currently participating in the African Cup of Nations.

Tottenham Hotspur boss Thomas Frank says he and Johan Lange had a good conversation with Cristian Romero this morning after his Instagram post following last night's 3-2 loss against Bournemouth. In a now edited post, the Spurs defender called out 'lies' from the club's hierarchy.

It came after Antoine Semenyo's stoppage-time winner condemned Spurs to another loss. "Apologies to all fans of you who follow us everywhere, who are always there and will continue to be," Romero wrote in a post on Instagram to his 5.1 million followers.

"We are responsible, there’s no doubt about that. I am the first. But we will keep facing up to it and trying to turn the situation around, for ourselves and for the club.

"At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don't - as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well.

"We'll stay here, working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all together, is part of football.

"All together, it will be easier." The unedited version included an accusation of telling lies.

It read: "At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don't - as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies."

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Frank has now responded to the message. He said: "I think after Cuti became the captain he's done a lot of good things right.

"I said it when I named him the captain that even though he's an experienced player, he's tried a lot, he's still a young leader. And I think a lot of the things he's done well on and off the pitch I'm happy with.

"I'm actually very happy with his performance last night, I think he was a true captain in many ways throughout the game. Speaking at half-time when we were 2-1 down, keep believing, keep doing the right things.

"But also when you're a young leader sometimes you make a mistake, of course it's good to keep it internally. Johan and I had a good conversation with him this morning about everything, which we of course keep internally."

Tottenham are next in action on Saturday at home to Aston Villa in the FA Cup (5:45pm) kick-off with Frank under huge pressure. They then host relegation strugglers West Ham United a week later.

Frank added: "I think the last five games we played, Liverpool, Crystal Palace, Brentford, Sunderland and Bournemouth, I think it's been consistent, good competitive performance through the roof? No, but good competitive, consistent performances and that's what you need in a long season. Those five games should have given us more than the five points we got, probably eight, nine, 10 points.

"And if you get that from those games, it's different. So that's what we're focusing on. Can we produce performances like that last night? Overall, like the performance, it's my job to deal with all the scrutiny. It's no problem, I can face all the questions, I'll take all the blame, I'll take all that.

"Also, my job is to look through everything and look through the defeat last night. Of course, it was very emotional and tough to take for everyone, but I think it was in many ways good and we deserve more from that. So we just need to keep doing that, especially the last two games, it's a minimum of four points we should have, if not more. So we just need to keep doing that. And the next thing is, it's almost the perfect storm.

"In a storm, some are building fences and hiding behind it, others are building windmills and getting stronger and getting more energy and learning from it."

Thomas Frank was pictured with an Arsenal coffee cup before Tottenham were beaten 3-2 by Bournemouth on Wednesday night - and with pressure mounting, it will be hard to shake off

Whether he likes it or not, Thomas Frank’s reign as Tottenham manager will be defined by a coffee cup. An Arsenal coffee cup.

There he is, the Tottenham manager pictured holding a cup with his team’s bitter rivals’ name and logo in all its glory. The picture is one of the all time great, silly football gaffes. Like an under-pressure manager standing underneath an exit sign.

How do we remember Steve McClaren? The England manager also known as the Wally With The Brolly from that rainy night at Wembley. Former Everton boss Ronald Koeman famously had to change his Christmas tree because it had red baubles on it.

Big Ron Atkinson going into the wrong dug out for his first game in charge of Nottingham Forest. Harry Kane, Tottenham legend, can never escape being pictured in an Arsenal shirt with his hair dyed red from his days on their books as a youngster.

Koeman, Atkinson and Kane have arguably put those pictures behind them. McClaren hasn’t. And I’m not sure Frank can either. Nothing is going right for Frank at the moment - either on the pitch or off it.

The Arsenal coffee cup was, of course, left behind after the Gunners won at Bournemouth last Saturday. Frank innocently picked it up and used it to drink his coffee. Frank said it would be “completely stupid” to suggest he had knowingly done it and admitted he was irritated even to be asked about it.

But the reality is now most football fans have seen all the mocked up pictures on social media to poke fun at the Spurs boss. Frank in his Arsenal pyjamas on an Arsenal bedspread. Frank in an Arsenal dressing gown, drinking from an Arsenal mug. Frank mocked up as Ty being interviewed by Robbie on Arsenal Fan TV.

While those AI generated pictures will go by the way side, the real coffee cup picture will remain and is yet another stick for the Spurs fans to beat him with.

Along with the dull football, too many set-pieces and a manager who has just not won the fans over. And that is the whole problem about this picture. It does not look like the players are fully on board going by performance levels.

And now the supporters have got to look at this coffee cup gaffe. Will Frank get the time to turn it around? That’s one thing. But does he have the support from the fans which he undoubtedly needs?

Does it really matter? Isn’t it just a bit of fun. Yes, probably. A bit like a great Spurs-supporting friend of mine who was once given a JVC stack system back in the 90s for Christmas. He took a pair of pliers to the stereo and managed to prise off the logos because they used to sponsor Arsenal. We still laugh about it.

There is nothing stranger than football fans. And, unfortunately, Frank does not seem to be getting that either.

Bournemouth beating Tottenham Hotspur led Spurs captain Cristian Romero to post a lengthy message on social media that was shown support from multiple teammates

Cristian Romero accused the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy of lying on social media after Spurs lost to Bournemouth in a since-edited Instagram post. The club captain claimed they only show up when times are good "to tell a few lies" before removing the accusations.

Romero apologised to Tottenham's fans after their 3-2 defeat on the south coast. Spurs led inside five minutes through Mathys Tel, but were behind by half-time thanks to an Evanilson equaliser, before Eli Junior Kroupi then put the Cherries ahead.

Joao Palhinha then made it 2-2 in the second half and seemingly secured Thomas Frank's team a point. Antoine Semenyo, however, scored a 95th-minute winner in what is likely to be his last match for Bournemouth.

In the aftermath, Romero shared a post on Instagram that read: "Apologies to all fans of you who follow us everywhere, who are always there and will continue to be. We are responsible, there’s no doubt about that.

"I am the first. But we will keep facing up to it and trying to turn the situation around, for ourselves and for the club.

"At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don’t — as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies.

"We’ll stay here, working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all toghether, is part of football. All together, it will be easier."

Romero has since edited the post to remove "to tell a few lies." Pedro Porro and Richarlison both commented on the post before its most recent edit.

The former said in a comment translated into English from Spanish: "Amen. Keep going brother. We have a lot of battles left." Richarlison replied with the clapping hands emoji.

Before that post, several Spurs players had heated exchanges with their travelling fans. Micky van der Ven seemed to single out of supporter in particular and had to be pulled away by a club staff member.

Palhinha and Porro also engaged with them after the full-time whistle, before stewards intervened to separate them from the fans. The former climbed over advertising hoardings to get up close and personal with those who travelled to the south coast.

Tottenham's loanee midfielder explained what happened when speaking afterwards. Palhinha said, "It was just that the supporters were sharing their frustrations.

"We, of course, understand; we respect them first of all. I just said we are fighting for all the same.

"We want to win, not just the players, the staff and the supporters. We are trying to get the wins that, in my opinion, we deserve in the last games."

Tottenham defender Micky van de Ven was involved in an argument with the club's supporters following their defeat to Bournemouth in the Premier League on Tuesday night

Micky van de Ven found himself embroiled in a heated exchange with Tottenham supporters following their dramatic defeat at Bournemouth. The Spurs centre-back was momentarily caught on Sky Sports cameras in a heated discussion with fans in the away section just after the final whistle.

Tottenham appeared destined for a draw after Joao Palhinha's late leveller, only for Antoine Semenyo to net the decisive goal during added time.

With tempers flaring, Van de Ven needed to be pulled away from a confrontation with some of the travelling Spurs supporters.

In a two-minute footage of the post-match scenes, Van de Ven, Pedro Porro and Palhinha are all seen interacting with the crowd.

Porro and Palhinha seemed to be attempting to calm the situation down, although Porro was subsequently held back by Guglielmo Vicario before walking away.

Van de Ven had received a yellow card earlier in the encounter for his complaints to the official after a penalty he had won was reversed following a VAR check. Spurs showed marked improvement in attack but still struggled defensively.

Thomas Frank addressed several matters in his post-match press conference, including his thoughts on the players' confrontations with supporters.

He said: "I haven't seen that situation, that's one thing. I think it's fair to say everyone involved in Tottenham, players, staff, fans, everyone is a tough one to take today.

"I think hopefully everyone can see how hard we worked to get everything in the right direction. And I think overall the performance was good, especially in the second half, in a game where we deserved to get more.

"That is extremely painful to be part of, so of course people are frustrated, I'm frustrated, so that's natural."

Frank was also forced to respond after he was photographed drinking from an Arsenal cup, which had been left at the Vitality Stadium following the Gunners' 3-2 victory over the weekend.

When quizzed about the incident, the Spurs boss responded: "Definitely not noticed it. I think it's fair to say that we're not winning every single football match so it would be absolutely, completely stupid of me to take a cup with Arsenal. Is there anyone thinking I've done that? All the staff has done it.

"They've been in the changing room, the game before us. Its normal to take a cup, give me an espresso, I do that before every game. I think actually it's a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked a question about that.

"I think we're definitely going in the wrong direction if we need to worry about me having a cup with another logo of another club, of course I'll never do that. That's extremely stupid."

Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank suffered another disappointing setback after defeat at Bournemouth, and his Arsenal blunder before kick-off won't please Spurs fans either

Thomas Frank was incredibly spotted sipping from an Arsenal coffee cup prior to Tottenham's Premier League defeat at Bournemouth in another awkward blunder for the under pressure boss. The Spurs manager was seen in a photo, taken at the Vitality Stadium before the game, drinking from a cup emblazoned with the Gunners' club crest.

When asked about drinking from the cup, he said: "I definitely did not notice it. It would be completely stupid of me to take it if I knew. "It's a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked about it. I would never do something that stupid."

The 52-year-old, who took over as Spurs head coach in the summer, has had a tough first six months, with fans expressing dissatisfaction with his tactical approach. His unusual team selections and odd remarks during press conferences have also raised eyebrows.

Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo scored an injury-time winner to consign Spurs to another disappointing defeat.

This began almost as soon as he assumed his role at Spurs, when he lavished praise on their arch-rivals ahead of a pre-season clash. Boos rang out from

He stated: "I think it is a great challenge, besides being our biggest rivals and the first north London derby outside the UK. It is also right now one of the best teams, I must say unfortunately, in the world. We also need to be honest.

"In that way it is going to be a big test, but it is more than a test as against Arsenal it is not only a friendly. Of course it is a game we will do everything we can to win."

Despite winning that match, things have gone downhill since then, and his latest faux pas on Wednesday evening is unlikely to sit well with supporters, particularly as the team's performance continues to disappoint.

The Lilywhites have only managed to secure two Premier League victories since early November, with significant losses to Chelsea and Newcastle United preceding this.

Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Fulham, Nottingham Forest and Liverpool had also triumphed over Spurs before the close of 2025. However, Tottenham are currently on a three-match unbeaten run, following draws with Brentford and Sunderland after defeating Crystal Palace.

This streak seemed set to end on the south coast, as the Cherries rallied from behind to take the lead after Mathys Tel's early goal. Evanilson and Eli Junior Kroupi both found the back of the net before half-time, while Lucas Bergvall was forced off due to injury after the interval.

Spurs appeared to have a chance to level the score when Micky van de Ven won a penalty, but following a VAR review, the decision was reversed.

Joao Palhinha later equalised the match with a spectacular overhead kick. Nevertheless, Semenyo scored a late winner in what looks like his final gift to Cherries' supporters ahead of a move to Man City.

Spurs' troubles continued last weekend when Mohamed Kudus was taken off in the first half of the draw at home against Sunderland.

Tottenham have confirmed the tragic passing of club legend Martin Chivers, aged 80. Their statement also stated that a tribute would be paid to the ex-forward for this evening's Premier League clash against Bournemouth.

Spurs' announcement read: "It is with immense sadness that we announce the passing of our legendary former striker, Martin Chivers.

"We extend our deepest sympathies to Martin’s family, friends and former team-mates at this incredibly sad time. Our players will wear black armbands during this evening’s fixture against AFC Bournemouth. Rest in peace, Martin. One of the all-time greats."

Chivers made a staggering 350 appearances for the Lilywhites over the 1960s and 1970s with 167 goals scored. He is the club's fifth all-time record goal-scorer behind Harry Kane, Jimmy Greaves, Bobby Smith and Son Heung-min.

The highlights of his career in north London are undoubtedly winning a UEFA Cup and two English League cups. In the triumph over Wolves, he scored a brace in the first leg.

He was also Tottenham's leading scorer in European competitions before being overtaken by Jermain Defoe in November 2023.

Chivers was in attendance at White Hart Lane to see Defoe break his record when he scored for the 23rd time in Europe against FC Sheriff in the Europa League.

Chivers also made senior appearances for Southampton, Norwich, Brighton and Switzerland side Servette. He also played 24 times for England

Tributes to Chivers have flown in since the announcement of his passing with former Spurs star Steve Archibald sending an emotional message.

He wrote to X: "Watched the great Martin Chivers before I became a pro, was an amazing watch, he was like Rolls Royce, so smooth in his movement, excellent in the air and a great finisher, but on top of all of that he was a really nice guy. Most sincere condolences to all of Martin’s family xxx."

Another of his former clubs in Southampton later sent their heartfelt condolences.

"We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our former striker, Martin Chivers. Born in the city, Martin made 189 appearances for the club, scoring 108 goals," their statement read.

"We offer our thoughts to Martin's family and friends during this difficult time [red heart emoji]."