Tottenham Hotspur looked like a “League Two team” against Chelsea on Saturday, according to Jamie Carragher, who says he worries for Thomas Frank.
Frank has been heavily criticised for his side’s performance as Tottenham fell to a third home defeat in five Premier League games this season.
Tottenham in the 2025/26 Premier League: Key statistics
Average 1.01 xG per 90 minutes
The Londoners are bizarrely the best away team in the Premier League this campaign but have been miserable at home, winning only one of their five games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
This leaves Spurs 17th in the Premier League home table, the same position they finished in the overall table under Ange Postecoglou last season.
It’s impossible to pinpoint one exact reason why Frank’s side have struggled at home, and when analysing their form, Liverpool legend Carragher said the former Brentford manager will probably feel much of the criticism is unwarranted.
He said on Monday Night Football: “He may be looking at it and thinking, I don’t know where all this is coming from. ‘We’re doing really well in the league; this team finished 17th last season. We went into the weekend as the highest scorers in the league.’”
Spurs ‘like a League Two team’ against Chelsea – Carragher
Carragher then compared Frank to other managers who made the step up from smaller Premier League clubs to one of the big boys.
Managers like Roy Hodgson, Sam Allardyce and Nuno Espirito Santo struggled after making that leap with a pragmatic approach, and there’s a fear Frank could experience the same fate.
“A big problem for Thomas Frank and other managers who make that jump from a smaller team in the Premier League to one of the big boys, especially when they’re seen as pragmatic coaches, is actually bringing the football to these teams,” Carragher added.
“He might look at it and think there’s not a lot wrong, but when you watch the game at the weekend and what the supporters have seen, that was like watching a League Two team against a Premier League team in the FA Cup.”
Carragher said the difference in quality was clear for all to see.
“When you look at the stats — and people who watched the game on Saturday Night Football — there was a huge contrast with the ball, and that is the biggest challenge for any coach making that jump from a team in the bottom half of the Premier League to one of the big boys.”
Do Spurs lack progressive midfielders?
Managers rarely want to move away from the philosophy that earned them their big job, but that pragmatic style isn’t what supporters of clubs like Tottenham or Liverpool expect to see.
There was too much long-ball football from “League Two Spurs” against Chelsea, with Frank’s side lacking both “courage” and a deep-lying midfielder capable of playing passes between the lines.
It’s hard to argue with the latter point. Joao Palhinha is a destroyer, not a playmaker, Rodrigo Bentancur is more box-to-box and physical over technical, and Pape Matar Sarr is a superb ball carrier, but not someone you’d expect to split defences open or play line-breaking passes.
“These three midfield players, that is not a midfield to progress the ball through the lines and get it to who’s essentially your number 10. That’s not right,” Carragher said.
READ: ‘Hasn’t got the ability’: Carragher blasts Spurs man ‘lacking quality’ and ‘not capable’
“But what I didn’t like again was the lack of courage. I’ve seen players do that all my life, they mark themselves so they don’t have to get the ball. They can say, ‘I couldn’t get it, I was marked.’
“You see Bentancur telling the goalkeeper to take his time, relax. No, he should be moving and getting into position to get on the ball.
“Then the ball goes long again. This worried me watching; it wasn’t difficult to get out. It wasn’t a full man-to-man press from Chelsea, and the ball just goes long. You see all the players pointing, knock it long, knock it long.
“Now I’m talking about a lack of courage, about helping your teammate. Sarr is running with the ball and he’s in trouble. He needs help. The two central midfielders and [Micky] van de Ven have got to read the game, knowing he’s going to need help or he’s going to lose the ball.”
Carragher then expanded on Spurs’ style under Frank, and why he’s concerned.
“I tell you, the manager who can coach this is [Enzo] Maresca — and we’ve seen a lot of this from Chelsea.
“When you talk about rotations, that’s what the managers at the top level can really do. Pep Guardiola, Arne Slot, Mikel Arteta, Maresca — they can coach the rotations and movements. So is it a question of the manager or the players? That would be a worry.
“For Thomas Frank, going forward, when you think of pragmatic managers in the past who’ve made that jump from a smaller club to a bigger club, that has always been the problem — can they coach the rotations and build-up play to break the lines?
“I worry for Thomas Frank, who, by the way, is still off to a really good start. But in terms of what the bigger club wants, I look at Sam Allardyce going to Newcastle — Premier League games at his new club dropped to 21, because of the style and the talk about attacking football.
“It’s also about the players they bring in. We’re talking about Thomas Frank bringing in Palhinha. David Moyes brought in [Marouane] Fellaini — again, not quite the player you’d expect.
“Fans just wouldn’t accept the style of football. So I think for Thomas Frank, he’s got to be mindful of that. Not every manager is great at everything. We know he’s great at set-pieces and organisation.
“We’ve had him on this show talking about Brentford and how he has to move the needle going forward in terms of their football. If he’s not the man to coach that, maybe he needs someone on his staff who can, because Spurs will need to implement that going forward if he’s going to be a success.
“Perhaps just 10 games into his spell at Spurs, he’s confident he’ll be able to find that home form and build that connection with the fans, which has been missing.”
Will Thomas Frank last at Spurs?
Winning at home against Wolves, or at least being competitive in a London derby, should be bread and butter for a Spurs manager, and it’s vitally important that Frank finds a solution.
The foundations are clearly there away from home, so once Frank and his coaching team discover the winning formula at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, confidence will grow that he is the man for the job, capable of making the jump from Brentford to a Big Six club.
Answering the question ‘Will Thomas Frank last at Spurs?’ is pure guesswork at this early stage. What we do know is that he’s an excellent coach, with superb man-management skills and a calm, assured presence in front of the media.
Transferring those qualities onto the pitch is another story. There’s reason for optimism, but Carragher is right, Spurs lack a No.6 or No.8 capable of dictating games and playing those decisive, line-breaking passes.
It’s also worth remembering that James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski have been injured all season, while £51million summer signing Xavi Simons has yet to make a real impact in a Spurs shirt.
Copenhagen at home in the Champions League is a must-win game for Spurs, and victory in that competition would be another clear sign that Frank can make the step up.
It’s a step that Nuno Espirito Santo also took when he left Wolves for Spurs in 2021, but he lasted less than four months, despite winning Premier League Manager of the Month for August.
Frank will hope to avoid the same fate as the former Wolves boss.