Sport
Tottenham’s attack has to improve to find consistency
Thomas Frank’s impact at Tottenham has been clear since he replaced Ange Postecoglou in the summer. The Dane is one of the most adaptable coaches in Europe, able to pick a team that suits the opposition.
After Postecoglou insisted on an all out attack approach and refused to move away from it despite guiding Spurs to 17th in the Premier League season with 21 defeats, the most by any team without getting relegated, Frank’s pragmatism has made a huge difference.
Winning the Europa League may have vindicated his predecessor to a certain extent in the eyes of some, but the refusal to adapt foreshadowed big issues had he stayed. Frank is, in many ways, the anti-Postecoglou; he will not force players into certain roles to satisfy his own ideals, but rather adjust his thoughts to the players he has. There have already been some huge moments for Spurs this season; beating PSG in the Super Cup final and winning away at Manchester City among them. His biggest success is where Postecoglou ultimately failed; Spurs look capable again.
Yet, with just one win at home in the league, it hasn’t been plain sailing. There are lingering issues for Frank to contend with; naturally, making them more resolute and effective away from home, and in transition generally, they are less so in possession and in front of goal. In defeats at home to Bournemouth, Aston Villa and, most recently, Chelsea, Spurs have only scored one goal, while they failed to put bottom club Wolves to bed before being pegged back in stoppage time.
Though they were only beaten 1-0 by the Blues on Saturday night, it was a game which showed the depth of their problem. They only had three shots in the whole game, with one on target and an expected goals total of 0.05, compared to Chelsea’s 2.95. It is no wonder they have won just 3 games at home since November, which is now 12 months ago.
“I think we were second best,” Frank said after the game.
“Chelsea were better than us, no doubt about that. I saw a lot of effort from the players, but not a good performance. We lacked the energy and intensity that you have to put into a game like this. We go 1-0 down and then we are chasing the game.
“I think we made so many simple passing mistakes and lost the ball too many times. It can be down to freshness and many other things.
“We can play at every pace that is needed. Today, slow or fast, it didn’t work no matter what.
“There will always be positives but, at the moment, I’m struggling to see it.”
But this problem runs deeper than Frank or even Postecoglou. Since the departure of Harry Kane for Bayern Munich in 2023, who was obviously a generational source of goals for the previous eight years, Spurs have spent heavily on their attack with little return. Son Heung-min, Kane’s extremely prolific partner in crime, departed this summer and nobody has stepped up to replace his goals.
Richarlison, Xavi Simons, Randall Kolo Muani, Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert are among the players who have joined Spurs since Kane’s exit. On Saturday, none of them mustered a shot at goal. Simons, a substitute, suffered the cardinal sin of being brought off again, while Dominic Solanke, a £65m signing from Bournemouth last summer, only scored nine Premier League goals in his debut campaign and has barely featured this term, with two goalless appearances so far.
All of those players have cost around £150m. Although Daniel Levy has now departed the club, the impact of his era, and recent poor recruitment, still lingers heavily.
Until Spurs can get a proper tune out of their strikers, this inconsistency will continue, no matter how adaptable Thomas Frank is.
