Under-pressure Tottenham manager Thomas Frank believes he can maintain the confidence of the club’s board despite speculation over his future following a string of poor results in a difficult season.
Frank was provoked with chants from Tottenham fans during Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to West Ham, with his team languishing in 14th place in the Premier League, with just one win in their last eight games in all competitions.
The day before their Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund, the Danish manager told a press conference on Monday that he had lunch with key figures at the club, including CEO Vinay Venkatesham.
“I’ve just gained a sense of trust along the way,” Frank said, adding that the current scrutiny is just “part of a media circus.”
Frank said he had “no doubt” he could win back the support of disgruntled fans who called for his departure during the game against West Ham and called for “bouncing back” at a difficult time.
“I’ve said it many times, as long as we win football games and win enough games, everyone will support us,” Frank told the BBC. “It’s not about me. It’s about supporting each other, supporting the team, supporting the players.”
lack of creativity
frank was hired During the off-season, he left Brentford for the first time in almost a decade, replacing Ange Postecoglou at Spurs. Although they won the Europa League under Postecoglou and ended a 17-year title drought, they finished 17th in the Premier League last season.
Frank was supposed to bring more solidity and tactical discipline to the team. But for many fans, the chaos of the Postecoglou era was replaced by the lethargy and lack of creativity under Frank.
Tottenham sit in a respectable 11th place in the 36-club Champions League table, but they have lost both of their domestic cup competitions and have won just seven of their 22 Premier League games. Their home form has been particularly poor, with six defeats in 11 league games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
“You fight even when your back is against the wall,” Frank said. “I’m energetic and I’ll fight. It’s not about me. We need to win football games and we need to achieve it together.”
injury problem
Frank said Tottenham would only have 11 senior outfield players available for the game against Dortmund due to injuries and suspensions.
“We probably have three players who physically need a big push to get through the 90 minutes,” Frank added.
“You need everyone’s support from the beginning, especially the team, especially the players. When you have that support, anything can happen. Magic can happen.”
Phone number deleted
Tottenham have announced that French striker Matthijs Tell will be left out of their Champions League squad in preparation for the return of Dominic Solanke.
“It wasn’t a good decision, but unfortunately that’s football,” Frank said.
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
