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Days into his new job as Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank pulled Micky Van de Ven aside to deliver some mixed feedback – to tell him he admired him as a defender but that he did not score enough goals for a player of his stature.

The towering 6'4" centre-back did not find the back of the net in an injury-hit 2024/25 but 14 games into the Frank era, he is their top scorer and was the architect of the 3-0 win at Everton on Sunday.

Some Spurs fans had joked it needed Frank to remind him how tall he was given his previous lack of aerial prowess - but more seriously, that early feedback certainly sparked something.

Last season, only six centre-backs won a lower percentage of aerial duels of those who played more than 1,000 minutes. Five were three inches or more shorter than Van de Ven.

His improvement in open play this campaign has been modest but more marked from set-pieces, from which he has scored all five of his goals. It is one of Frank's biggest achievements at the club so far.

If Ange Postecoglou was an idealist, the Dane is the true pragmatist. Earlier in his managerial career he was not convinced by the virtue of set-pieces, but has long since made them one of the strongest weapons in his armoury.

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"I have always wanted to develop things," he said earlier this week. "Where is the edge? How can we do things to potentially win a match?"

Without that attitude, Van de Ven's first-half double at Everton on Sunday would not have happened and the result, in a game where Spurs did not play particularly well in open play, may have been much different.

"Big praise to Micky, and especially to Andreas [Georgson, Spurs set-piece coach]," said Frank after those goals - the first brace Van de Ven has scored in his career.

Tottenham have been strong at attacking set-plays for some time and have the fifth-best scoring record from corners in Europe's top five leagues since the start of 2023/24.

But Georgson's individual work with players including Van de Ven has fine tuned things.

A centre-back in his own playing days, he first worked with Frank in 2019 at Brentford where his work was so highly valued he became the first in a line of set-piece coaches poached by Arsenal the following year.

More widely than his work with Van de Ven, he has helped Spurs come seconds away from winning the Super Cup in August through a pair of goals from free-kicks, and masterminded those two from corners against an Everton side previously unbeaten from a set-piece all season.

Sunday's was a perfect away day in many respects. Spurs soaked up pressure, scored at the right times and slowed the game down where possible - only two teams have taken longer over restarts all season - to leave Merseyside with a comprehensive result. You can see why they are unbeaten on the road this season.

But the rise of Van de Ven and his importance to Spurs' attacking output is also a symbol of deficiencies elsewhere. Tottenham can get away with gritty, attritional results away from home where any three points are welcome and the band of ultras in the away end don't need inspiring.

But at home, a Champions League club that spent over £150m last summer demands more. It's not that Frank can't play both ways; his Brentford side developed year-on-year and scored just three goals fewer than second-placed Arsenal in his final season.

But things are yet to click for him on that front here. Just four teams have had more possession than Spurs on home soil but they are one of six with less than 100 opposition box touches. Only Nottingham Forest and West Ham have scored fewer goals in front of their own fans.

Possession without purpose is very un-Frank-like and owes more to a void of creativity in the team than his own design. He has been robbed of both Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison all season, the two players in the Spurs side most capable of unlocking tight defences and making the most of their other attacking talent.

Spurs have won just 14 of the 50 games where one or both players have been missing since the start of 2023/24, and 22 of the 35 where both started - scoring an extra 0.6 goals per game on average. It's plain to see what could change when they return.

Xavi Simons was meant to plug the gap but out of necessity is having to learn on the job as he adapts to the physicality and pace of the Premier League, starting five of their six league matches since his arrival and clearly struggling at times with the league's intensity. It is easily forgotten the £51.8m summer signing, capped 31 times for the Netherlands, is only 22 years old.

More will be demanded in time but for the moment, there is enough goodwill to go around with Spurs a tentative third in the Premier League. This is not a season built on solid foundations, and Frank has had to be creative to replace that creativity.

That pragmatism has bought him goodwill so far. But with Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal and Newcastle coming in their next five league games, the biggest tests yet of his adaptability are on their way.

Days into his new job as Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank pulled Micky Van de Ven aside to deliver some mixed feedback – to tell him he admired him as a defender but that he did not score enough goals for a player of his stature.

The towering 6'4" centre-back did not find the back of the net in an injury-hit 2024/25 but 14 games into the Frank era, he is their top scorer and was the architect of the 3-0 win at Everton on Sunday.

Some Spurs fans had joked it needed Frank to remind him how tall he was given his previous lack of aerial prowess - but more seriously, that early feedback certainly sparked something.

Last season, only six centre-backs won a lower percentage of aerial duels of those who played more than 1,000 minutes. Five were three inches or more shorter than Van de Ven.

His improvement in open play this campaign has been modest but more marked from set-pieces, from which he has scored all five of his goals. It is one of Frank's biggest achievements at the club so far.

If Ange Postecoglou was an idealist, the Dane is the true pragmatist. Earlier in his managerial career he was not convinced by the virtue of set-pieces, but has long since made them one of the strongest weapons in his armoury.

Got Sky? Watch Tottenham vs Chelsea LIVE on your phone📱

Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW📺

Choose the Sky Sports push notifications you want! 🔔

"I have always wanted to develop things," he said earlier this week. "Where is the edge? How can we do things to potentially win a match?"

Without that attitude, Van de Ven's first-half double at Everton on Sunday would not have happened and the result, in a game where Spurs did not play particularly well in open play, may have been much different.

"Big praise to Micky, and especially to Andreas [Georgson, Spurs set-piece coach]," said Frank after those goals - the first brace Van de Ven has scored in his career.

Tottenham have been strong at attacking set-plays for some time and have the fifth-best scoring record from corners in Europe's top five leagues since the start of 2023/24.

But Georgson's individual work with players including Van de Ven has fine tuned things.

A centre-back in his own playing days, he first worked with Frank in 2019 at Brentford where his work was so highly valued he became the first in a line of set-piece coaches poached by Arsenal the following year.

More widely than his work with Van de Ven, he has helped Spurs come seconds away from winning the Super Cup in August through a pair of goals from free-kicks, and masterminded those two from corners against an Everton side previously unbeaten from a set-piece all season.

Sunday's was a perfect away day in many respects. Spurs soaked up pressure, scored at the right times and slowed the game down where possible - only two teams have taken longer over restarts all season - to leave Merseyside with a comprehensive result. You can see why they are unbeaten on the road this season.

But the rise of Van de Ven and his importance to Spurs' attacking output is also a symbol of deficiencies elsewhere. Tottenham can get away with gritty, attritional results away from home where any three points are welcome and the band of ultras in the away end don't need inspiring.

But at home, a Champions League club that spent over £150m last summer demands more. It's not that Frank can't play both ways; his Brentford side developed year-on-year and scored just three goals fewer than second-placed Arsenal in his final season.

But things are yet to click for him on that front here. Just four teams have had more possession than Spurs on home soil but they are one of six with less than 100 opposition box touches. Only Nottingham Forest and West Ham have scored fewer goals in front of their own fans.

Possession without purpose is very un-Frank-like and owes more to a void of creativity in the team than his own design. He has been robbed of both Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison all season, the two players in the Spurs side most capable of unlocking tight defences and making the most of their other attacking talent.

Spurs have won just 14 of the 50 games where one or both players have been missing since the start of 2023/24, and 22 of the 35 where both started - scoring an extra 0.6 goals per game on average. It's plain to see what could change when they return.

Xavi Simons was meant to plug the gap but out of necessity is having to learn on the job as he adapts to the physicality and pace of the Premier League, starting five of their six league matches since his arrival and clearly struggling at times with the league's intensity. It is easily forgotten the £51.8m summer signing, capped 31 times for the Netherlands, is only 22 years old.

More will be demanded in time but for the moment, there is enough goodwill to go around with Spurs a tentative third in the Premier League. This is not a season built on solid foundations, and Frank has had to be creative to replace that creativity.

That pragmatism has bought him goodwill so far. But with Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal and Newcastle coming in their next five league games, the biggest tests yet of his adaptability are on their way.

Newcastle remain on course to retain the Carabao Cup after a 2-0 home win over Tottenham moved them into the quarter-finals.

The holders have been drawn in the last eight at home against Fulham, whom they beat last weekend 2-1 in the Premier League at St James' Park

Newcastle are looking forward to a fourth consecutive Carabao Cup quarter-final after headers from Fabian Schar and Nick Woltemade inflicted Tottenham's first away defeat of the season in all competitions.

As it happened | Teams | Stats

Carabao Cup fixtures and results

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Newcastle made a fast start and deservedly went ahead as Schar, one of eight changes from Saturday's home win over Fulham, headed in from a 24th-minute corner.

But Spurs were unhappy with the referee for the opener as they felt Djed Spence was not given enough time to take his position in the box after putting his boot back on after losing it in the build-up to the corner.

Spurs boss Thomas Frank told Sky Sports that he felt referee Chris Kavanagh made a "mistake" in not allowing Spence time to get back and mark his man, Schar.

Harvey Barnes nearly doubled Newcastle's lead in the 41st minute as he hit the bar from close range - and was nearly punished for his miss in first-half stoppage time, but Richarlison headed straight at Newcastle goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

It was a frustrating evening for Spurs' striker as he struggled in front of goal and was shown up by his opposite number, Woltemade, who doubled the home side's lead five minutes into the second half.

Newcastle's club-record signing took full advantage of Spurs goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky's misjudgement at Joe Willock's cross to nod home for a sixth goal in nine starts.

Tottenham pushed for a route back into the game, but ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale was in fine form as he made a great save to deny Pape Sarr's powerful curling effort inside the box.

Tottenham's Newcastle hoodoo continues with Eddie Howe's side having now won six of their last seven games against the north London club in all competitions.

Newcastle will aim to make it three straight wins as they visit West Ham in the Premier League on Sunday, live on Sky Sports, while Spurs will look to bounce back at home to London rivals Chelsea on Saturday, also live on Sky Sports.

Howe praises Woltemade impact

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe speaking to Sky Sports on Woltemade:

"I think he's come in very open, very open to new ideas, very open to delivering what we need him to do, so he's absorbed all the information we've given him, and he's been very good tactically. That has then enabled us to play in the way that we want to.

"Then I think once you get that framework, then you can develop his skills, and he's got unique one. He's got a very strong game.

"Great to see him score today because all strikers need that confidence and that will do him his confidence to get another lift."

On the defence of the Carabao Cup: "It means everything. We're trying to take it slowly, small steps.

"We're into the quarter finals, which I think is a big hurdle for us. We're now entering the latter stage of the competition.

"We know what it is like and those experiences throughout the last three years will serve us well hopefully."

Frank 'happy' with performance as he blames 'mistakes' for goals

Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank speaking to Sky Sports:

"The performance, in many ways, I'm very happy with. It's a very difficult away ground and we created a lot of good opportunities.

"I think it's one of our better performances in the season, so that performance I'm very happy with. I think the mentality was great from the players.

"We conceded two goals from mistakes. The first is a mistake from Chris (Kavanagh), the ref, because he didn't allow Djed (Spence) time to come back in, which he clearly should've done. And on top of that, Djed is supposed to mark Schar, who scored.

"The second, unfortunately, was a mistake from Tony (Antonin Kinsky)."

On Schar's opener: "It was completely common sense [to allow Spence time to recover].

"It's not the 88th minute. Djed's coming back to a position; he's not doing anything on purpose. He needs to do his shoe laces - clearly it had come off the boot, so that's just my little feeling."

Analysis: Richarlison's struggles continue

This was a night to forget for Richarlison.

Dropped for Sunday's win at Everton, the Brazilian was handed the chance to regain his place - but he did not take it.

The first half saw him waste three chances as he mistimed his run for Lucas Bergvall's cross, failed to make a connection on Brennan Johnson's low ball and then headed straight at Ramsdale.

It led to Sky Sports' Jobi McAnuff saying of Richarlison at half-time: "He seems to be in a place where everything is going against him".

And it certainly stayed that way in the second half, with Richarlison's poor play up front leading to Woltemade's goal.

The Brazilian found himself in a good position on the edge of the Newcastle box but was easily snuffed out, and just 35 seconds later, Woltemade was heading into Spurs' net.

The 28-year-old could not redeem himself as Ramsdale denied him at the near post, and he was taken off in the 78th minute after failing to score with his four shots.

His early-season promise has now fully evaporated, with the £60m-man without a goal in his last eight appearances in all competitions.

And on the evidence at St James' Park, Richarlison will be back to starting on the bench for this weekend's London derby against Chelsea.

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Newcastle remain on course to retain the Carabao Cup after a 2-0 home win over Tottenham moved them into the quarter-finals.

Headers from Fabian Schar and Nick Woltemade inflicted Tottenham's first away defeat of the season in all competitions.

Newcastle made a fast start and deservedly went ahead as Schar, one of eight changes from Saturday's home win over Fulham, headed in from a 24th-minute corner.

As it happened | Teams | Stats

Carabao Cup fixtures and results

Got Sky? Watch Carabao Cup on the Sky Sports app 📱

Not got Sky? Get instant access with no contract📺

But Spurs were unhappy with the referee for the opener as they felt Djed Spence was not given enough time to take his position in the box after putting his boot back on after losing it in the build-up to the corner.

Harvey Barnes nearly doubled Newcastle's lead in the 41st minute as he hit the bar from close range - and was nearly punished for his miss in first-half stoppage time, but Richarlison headed straight at Newcastle goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

It was a frustrating evening for Spurs' striker as he struggled in front of goal and was shown up by his opposite number, Woltemade, who doubled the home side's lead five minutes into the second half.

Newcastle's club-record signing took full advantage of Spurs goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky's misjudgement at Joe Willock's cross to nod home for a sixth goal in nine starts.

Tottenham pushed for a route back into the game, but ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale was in fine form as he made a great save to deny Pape Sarr's powerful curling effort inside the box.

Tottenham's Newcastle hoodoo continues with Eddie Howe's side having now won six of their last seven games against the north London club in all competitions.

Newcastle will aim to make it three straight wins as they visit West Ham in the Premier League on Sunday, live on Sky Sports, while Spurs will look to bounce back at home to London rivals Chelsea on Saturday, also live on Sky Sports.

What's next?

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