Manager Thomas Frank is under real pressure.
Spurs are winless in their last five Premier League games, with a single point against Manchester United and a point against Newcastle (2 – 2) in that period, and three losses to London rivals Chelsea, Arsenal and Fulham.
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Losing fans and the dressing room
The fans are turning against the former Brentford manager, with a real split between the team and the fans present. Frank criticised the fans for booing goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario during Saturday’s defeat to Fulham at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Pedro Porro coming out after the game and making his own statement, after being seen angry with teammate Lucas Bergvall after the final whistle.
Frank said: “I didn’t like that our fans booed him [Vicario] right after and sometimes he touched the ball. They can’t be true Tottenham fans because everyone supports each other when you’re on the pitch. And we do everything we can to perform. Afterwards, fair enough, booing, no problem. But not along the way. That is unacceptable in my opinion.”
Porro wrote on Instagram: “Football is emotions. In football, as in life, there can always be mistakes. What I will not tolerate is hearing disrespect from the fans of my teammates, hence my frustration at the end of the game.”
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Terrible statistics
Tottenham Hotspur players look discouraged after losing to Fulham in the Premier League. The loss to Fulham meant that there were only three home wins in the last 21 games in the N17 – a shocking statistic that Frank will have to turn around, with only one of those wins under him – the first game of the season against Burnley.
The reality is that Spurs have stagnated somewhat over the past six years – with the exception of the Europa League triumph. Since Mauricio Pochettino left the club, Tottenham have finished 6th, 7th, 4th, 8th, 5th and 17th respectively, qualifying for the Champions League only once via the league and thankfully through that Europa League triumph last year.
Frank is the fourth permanent manager in that period – the sixth to lead the team after interim periods under Cristian Stellini and Ryan Mason – and what Pochettino – now manager of the US national team preparing for the World Cup – said before he left has been ignored.
Better furniture required
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino reacts angrily. Pochettino had just led Spurs to fourth place in the Premier League and the final of the Champions League, but these positions hid a slow decline in performance from a team that had lived together, fused and excelled together over a period of five years or so.
Pochettino warned that things would have to change and that it would be painful. In 2019, he said: “When you talk about Tottenham, everyone says you have a fantastic house, but you have to put in the furniture. If you want a lovely house, you may need better furniture. And it depends on your budget whether you’re going to spend money. We have to respect teams like Manchester City or Liverpool who spend a lot of money. We’re brave, we’re smart, we’re creative.
Now it’s about creating a new chapter and having a clear idea of how we will build the new project. We must rebuild. It’s going to be painful.”
What Tottenham have done since then is to rebuild, rebuild and rebuild again under different managers. It’s been painful for the fans, that’s for sure, but it hasn’t been a proper, focused rebuilding of the squad.
42 players have been signed permanently in that timeframe, with a further nine joining the club on loan deals. However, when these signings are spread across four different managers – five if you consider that five of those transfers were made for Pochettino – it is not a true rebuild when a new boss comes in with his own ideas, his own philosophy and perhaps a desire for other players to play in a different way.
Trust the process
Jose Mourinho Tottenham. Spurs have wavered from one manager to the next and have had a squad that had to be constantly changed and updated as a result. At some point, you have to stick with the man at the helm and – for lack of a better phrase that has become synonymous with a particular manager who was given time to create something down the road – trust the process.
Daniel Levy’s departure as chairman at the start of this season leaves Vinai Venkatesham and the Lewis family in charge at N17. It feels like a new era behind the scenes, and it has already been confirmed that a £100 million investment has been made, which will help when it comes to the January transfer window.
That message of a painful rebuild has been completely ignored, and whether it’s Frank being given the time and space to really make it stick, or another person at some point this season or next summer – Pochettino could be back on the market by then after the World Cup is over – who knows, but whatever happens, Tottenham must make their next big decision right.
The fans demand it.
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