Tottenham: Thomas Frank must take inspiration from Spurs' past if he is to save his job | OneFootball

Dane has built a career on being risk-averse, but the handbrake must now come off

So, Frank will be hoping his side can translate their efficiency on the road to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as they look to end a five-game winless run in all competitions.

Tottenham are among the highest scorers in the Premier League this season, yet their average of 1.14 goals per game at home is the sixth-lowest in the division. Few stats highlight their issues on home soil quite so dramatically.

Frank wants his team to be efficient in front of goal - taking fewer but higher-quality shots. This was something his Brentford side excelled at.

Their snatch-and-grab draw away to Newcastle on Tuesday, with Cristian Romero scoring with Tottenham’s only two shots on target, was proof that they have the ability to stay in games and strike cold.

I encourage the players to do everything we can to create more chances and score some goals

Thomas Frank

While that tactic may work away from home, Tottenham fans want to impose more of an identity on the opposition when they welcome them to north London.

So far, Frank, like his predecessors, is finding it hard to make Tottenham’s home a fortress, and his style, which is predicated on the quality rather than the quantity of chances, has left little room for error in attack.

The Dane, though, is not for changing. He has overcome difficult starts at both Brondby and Brentford by sticking to his principles.

“No I haven’t [encouraged them to shoot more]” Frank said in his pre-match press conference. “I encourage them to do everything we can to create more chances and score some goals.

Frank is stringent in his beliefs; it has carried him from the Championship to the Champions League in little under a decade, but the Dane has also built his reputation on being adaptable.

Cristian Romero scored a remarkable bicycle kick to snatch a draw at Newcastle

Steve Welsh/PA Wire

Shooting from outside the box has not been discouraged; the conditions just have to be right for the shot to be taken.

He continued: “I think it’s always a combination of different factors that are affecting each other. I definitely think that when a ball drops on the edge of the box, you should shoot. And in areas around the box, you should shoot.

“We are very working very hard on our phase two and our phase three, how we are getting into the right positions and how we get enough player movement on the side to produce the breakthroughs and penetrations.

“The better we do that, the more we do that, the more we will end in those situations, the more we will get good opportunities to shoot.”

Frank likes to control the percentages. Perhaps, though, at a club where creative mavericks of the ilk of Glenn Hoddle, David Ginola and Ossie Ardiles are lauded, he has to let the handbrake off.

As the motto goes, ‘To dare is to do.’