The Thomas Frank era at Tottenham Hotspur is off to a pretty positive start, but there are still some things he needs to fix, including one obvious mistake he keeps making.
Under Ange Postecoglou, Spurs were criticised for being too disorganised and cavalier, while the manager himself was repeatedly told to be more adaptable in his tactical approach.
He refused to do so, at least in the league, and it cost him his job despite ending Tottenham’s 17-year wait for a trophy with that Europa League triumph.
Now, with Thomas Frank at the helm, the Lilywhites are far more solid and consistent. But, one pattern has continued across the tenure of both Spurs bosses, and even an unbeaten start in the Champions League is not disguising it.
Archie Gray needs to be played in midfield
Frank was told he’s using Mathys Tel wrong just a few days ago, but it’s actually the repeated insistence on playing Archie Gray in defence that is a crime against football.
The youngster has proven himself more than dependable wherever he’s played. Last season, Postecoglou employed the former Leeds starlet all the way across the back four, and he never let Spurs down.
Indeed, playing at left-back against Monaco last night, Gray was tireless, composed, did the dirty work, and made efforts to progress the ball forward at every opportunity — something that cannot be said of his teammate, Rodrigo Bentancur.
However, his natural position is in midfield, and yet Tottenham fans have hardly ever actually seen him play there. He’s shown time and time again that he has all the attributes needed to unlock the best out of this Spurs midfield, so when will Frank realise he needs to be playing higher up the pitch?
The balance of the Spurs midfield is all wrong
I’ll go back to Rodrigo Bentancur and reiterate that he is quite clearly the weak link in this Thomas Frank system right now. The Uruguayan midfielder has plenty of positive attributes — he’s good at breaking up play and is always calm on the ball — but the problem is, he seems terrified of making progressive passes.
While that’s great for maintaining possession, it seriously harms the attacking momentum and Spurs look blunt in that regard lately.
Despite injuries to James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski, Thomas Frank still has very exciting options in the middle of the park, but he just seems to be using them in the wrong combination.
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Poll: Who is Tottenham’s best midfielder?
Lucas Bergvall was poor in the number 10 role against Monaco, a role which should be reserved for Xavi Simons. Instead, the Swedish star needs to drop a little deeper into the pivot role.
Pape Sarr has been inexplicably absent of late, and that needs to change, with the athletic Senegalese star offering much-needed energy in the midfield.