Thomas Frank is scratching his head a bit after Tottenham Hotspur’s wasteful first half required a stoppage-time equalizer from Joao Palhinha to collect a 1-1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers in North London on Saturday.
MORE — Spurs vs Wolves recap, video highlights
A day of surprise results in the Premier League found a fitting inclusion in Wolves taking a point from Spurs and it could’ve been three as Santiago Bueno’s opportunistic cash-in off a second-half corner gave the visitors a surprise lead.
Mohammed Kudus was lively in the first half but Spurs lacked urgency and got very little out of its center forward position. So, of course, it was midweek hero and defensive midfielder Joao Palhinha who drew Tottenham Hotspur level in stoppage time.
Here’s what Frank said after the draw.
Thomas Frank reaction — Spurs boss speaks after Tottenham Hotspur held by Wolves
What did you think? “I think we played a good first half in many ways. Without having enough clear-cut chances we got into dangerous situations quite a few times where we could’ve done quite a few more. We had a massive chance with a Mohammed Kudus disallowed goal. Wolves were nowhere near anything.
“The second half, after their goal, I thought we lost a bit of control. We didn’t keep our structure enough. We were rushing too much in my opinion. The effort was fantastic. We got a well-deserved equalizer in the end but when you’re down 1-nil for a lot of minutes you can’t stay you deserved a win.”
Palhinha’s goal was a moment to celebrate: “You’re happy because the players worked so hard. It was a well-deserved point in general. You play home at Wolves who haven’t won yet so of course you want three points, but it’s a reminder that the league is relentless.”
Could this be deepest PL season yet? “Maybe you’re right. It’s definitely very, very competitive. No doubt. Yeah, very tight.”
Joao Palhinha reaction — Winning should’ve been ‘mandatory’
That was some game: “I’m not happy at all to be honest. That’s a game we definitely need to win, especially at home. We did a great first half. The second not really. We could create more chances. We started to make everything so quick and when you are losing 1-nil against these kinds of teams you need to push. It’s one more game to improve, to analyze. It’s not going to be easy, we knew it. Me and my teammates are not happy because this kind of result is mandatory.”