Frank’s Reflections on North London Derby Defeat

omidbasir- Head coach Frank expressed his confidence prior to the North London derby; however, Arsenal convincingly defeated Tottenham, with Spurs achieving an Expected Goals (xG) metric of only 0.07 and a mere three shots on target. Following the loss on Sunday, the former Brentford manager, who joined Spurs on a three-year contract during the summer, extended his apologies to the traveling fans.

In an interview with Sky Sports, Frank stated, “This is an extremely painful experience. I won’t shy away from that. It was a poor performance, entirely contrary to our intentions when we arrived. We owe the fans an apology for how we played. Regardless of both teams’ efforts, they capitalized significantly more than we did. When we resorted to long passes, we failed to secure enough duels, as demonstrated by the second and third goals, where one player navigated past two or three defenders. It was a subpar performance, and we lost. While I’ve observed considerable character and fight in this team, we simply did not win enough duels. We can label it however we wish, but the fact remains that we fell short.”

According to The Telegraph, Tottenham is committed to allowing Frank ample time to rectify the issues at hand. However, there are growing concerns that his frequent rotations may be complicating matters. The report indicates that some players feel Frank should concentrate more on leveraging the team’s strengths rather than focusing on the opposition. Nevertheless, the extent of this sentiment among the squad remains unclear. The club’s owners, the Lewis family, are focused on long-term success under Frank, suggesting that no immediate changes are anticipated. Notably, Frank has made 29 alterations to his starting XI in the Premier League this season, ranking third in the league behind Wolves (39) and Chelsea (31).

In addition, Frank mentioned that he attempted to implement the same tactics that Spurs employed during their challenging UEFA Super Cup loss to Paris Saint-Germain in August, but the result was an “extremely bad” performance.

He added, “This defeat is incredibly difficult to process. Emotions are high, and frustration is palpable; we need to assess the situation with composed minds. I entered the match feeling confident about our competitiveness, which makes the outcome even more disappointing. We aimed to execute a strategy that had previously succeeded against PSG, but today it was ineffective. I fully accept responsibility for my decisions, and when results don’t align with our expectations, that falls on me. We made adjustments at half-time, but I’m certain that regardless of the formation, if we cannot win enough duels or exhibit sufficient aggression, the formation becomes irrelevant.”

The challenges ahead for Tottenham do not ease, as they prepare to face defending Champions League holders PSG after their defeat to league leaders Arsenal. One aspect that Frank is keen to rectify is the team’s lack of attacking creativity.

He noted, “The issue of creativity has been a recurring theme that we are diligently working to improve. Our performances today and against Chelsea were not promising. We must continue to address these shortcomings. There were many aspects of this game that require enhancement. Four months into the season, it is evident that they are further along in their development as a team. Naturally, there will be scrutiny, especially after a heavy loss to our biggest rivals. However, we must block out the noise and maintain our focus. I believe this team is highly competitive, as evidenced by our performances against Manchester City and PSG. While today’s showing was disappointing, it was not reflective of our true potential.”