Thomas Frank has been warned his relationship with Tottenham fans will continue to be a "slow burner" if their hopes of seeing attacking football are not met. The Dane has led Spurs to third in the Premier League but his brand of football has received a lukewarm reception from supporters, who have been labelled as being "obsessed" with how their team play.
Frank handed Tottenham reins after stellar Brentford spell
Frank was appointed as Tottenham head coach in June following the dismissal of Ange Postecoglou. Earning plenty of plaudits for his excellent work at Brentford, having turned the Bees into an established top-flight side following their promotion from the Championship in 2021, the 52-year-old was rewarded for his efforts by being given the chance to manage one of England’s biggest clubs.
AdvertisementAFPSpurs have made strong start results-wise under the Dane
Frank has since presided over a strong run of results which has seen Spurs rise to third in the league table and just five points behind leaders Arsenal. Under the former Brondby manager’s stewardship, Tottenham are the league’s joint-top goalscorers alongside Manchester City and Chelsea, while only Arsenal boast a better defensive record than Frank’s side. Whereas Spurs have conceded seven times in just nine games, north London rivals Arsenal have only let in three.
Carragher weighs in on reception to Frank's style of play
However, while the numbers prove to be great reading, Frank’s brand of football is yet to win over the Tottenham faithful. And while praising his "transformative and positive" impact since replacing Postecoglou, Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher predicts it will take a little while longer for the fanbase to warm to Frank, unless he can get his team playing on the front foot more.
Citing how previous Spurs managers Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo struggled to win over fans with their pragmatic styles of play, Carragher wrote in "Spurs fans like what they are seeing with the team’s improved results. For the time being, Frank’s pragmatic approach is probably more tolerated than adored.
"My instincts are that the relationship between Frank and his new fanbase will be a slow burner.
"For the past two years it felt as though many Spurs supporters were being blinded by the idea of what they were trying to be rather than what they actually were – a team far too easy to expose.
"During my lifetime, the Spurs fanbase have been one of the most obsessed about insisting their team play in a certain way. They never took to Jose Mourinho or Nuno Espirito Santo for that reason.
"The desire to play beautiful football is hardly exclusive to Spurs. Every top club in the world wants to play a technically brilliant style, although, for the majority, trophy-winning football trumps being regarded as one of the most attractive teams."
Getty Images SportLiverpool icon urges Spurs fans to 'dream big' under Frank
While Wednesday’s 2-0 Carabao Cup defeat against holders Newcastle represented a setback for Tottenham, Carragher still believes the club should "dream big" about what they could achieve under Frank this season.
"Spurs are in third place, and Frank will have done an amazing job if he keeps them there," Carragher continued. "This is the season to dream big given the problems at other clubs. If England continue to have five Champions League spots, Spurs are well placed to take one of them through their league position.
"Spurs were style over substance for too long under Postecoglou. He never beat Chelsea as Spurs manager. Now a period of substance over style gives them a great chance of making a statement against a top-four rival.
"Longer-term, and in a vastly different way, seeing how Frank goes about trying to give Spurs the best of both worlds will be as captivating as Postecoglou’s gung-ho approach."
