The Ghost of Postecoglou  | OneFootball

Before the international break Tottenham had a few questionable performances, but on the whole things were looking okay. The main concern was the poor home form and lack of goals from the forward line. 

But after a North London derby to forget and a difficult trip to Paris, their away form has now gone out of the window in spectacular fashion.

Déjà Vu

The positives under Thomas Frank seemed to be a more robust team, conceding less goals and generally defending better. This hasn’t been the case in the last two games, as his side have leaked 9 goals. Spurs fans will have an all too familiar feeling that they’ve seen this all before.

Last season, under Ange Postecoglou, Tottenham looked particularly vulnerable at the back. Especially when they were pressing high up the pitch. Frank tried the opposite with his defence against Arsenal, which was a failed experiment.

With five at the back not keeping the Gunners at bay, the Dane changed things up in the 2nd half, but holes started appearing as they chased the game. It was too little too late at 3-1 and when Destiny Udogie dramatically slipped as Eberechi Eze rifled in his hat trick goal, I swear I saw an apparition of big Ange scowling on the touchline. 

Stats for sore eyes

The statistics I produce about Tottenham seem to be more damning every week. After the 5-3 defeat to PSG on Wednesday night, this was the first time Tottenham have conceded 4+ goals in back-to-back games since May 2003. 

Glenn Hoddle was the manager all those years ago. A fan favourite on the pitch, Hoddle couldn’t quite work his magic off it. With Frank seemingly starting to struggle in the Tottenham hot seat, maybe the top job in N17 has become a poisoned chalice?

A lot has been made about Tottenham’s lack of creativity so far this season and the fact that they’ve only made four through balls is the stat that backs this up. Yes they’re missing Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison, but the likes of Xavi Simons and Lucas Bergvall really need to step things up.

Positive signs

Bergvall actually looked really industrious against the European champions, as did Archie Gray. These two young, hungry players shone for Postecoglou last season, while many others were out injured. 

Frank ditched the five-man defense in the Champions League and had Gray and Rodrigo Bentancur protecting a back four. Spurs matched Paris St-Germain for about an hour of the match, taking the lead twice. 

Randal Kolo Muani was another bright spark for Spurs. The Frenchman got his first goals in a Spurs shirt, against his parent club. UEFA rules dictate that loanees can still play against their current employers in European competitions. Tottenham supporters will now be hoping that the striker can produce the goods in their Saturday night match at the Tottenham Stadium against Fulham.

Another London derby

It seems like there’s a London derby every other week in the Premier League. Frank seemed to have one eye on this Saturday as he left various players on the bench against PSG, including Joao Palhinha, Mohammed Kudus and Wilson Odobert. These players will be expected to come back in, as Frank desperately seeks a home victory. Tottenham only have three wins from 12 matches going into this Premier League clash.

Last weekend, Fulham produced a hard fought 1-0 victory against high flying Sunderland. They sit 15th in the table with 14 points, four points adrift of Tottenham. The West London team will take encouragement from other visiting team’s fortunes in North London so far this season. The pressure will be off of them, making it another difficult evening for the Lilywhites. 

Ange Frank

Thomas Frank is normally quite calm and measured in interviews. However, the Dane has started to show cracks in his media armour.

Maybe the pressure of the job is starting to get to him, but certain quotes haven’t gone down well with the Tottenham faithful. After saying “Eze who?” before the Arsenal game, he then reminded everyone where Tottenham finished in the previous league season.

Maybe he was defending himself after a hurtful defeat, but where the team finished in the last campaign has no relevance to the current state of affairs. It also doesn’t excuse a gutless performance in a big derby match. 

After the loss to PSG he then made the bold statement that Vitinha will win the next Ballon d’Or after his hat-trick performance. HIs tone is bordering on the same arrogant style as a certain former Head Coach. Christmas is fast approaching, so maybe, just maybe Frank will get a visit from the ghost of Postecoglou’s past.