Thomas Frank has been very honest about Tottenham Hotspur’s defeat to London rivals Chelsea on Saturday.
Spurs were beaten 1-0 by Chelsea after Joao Pedro’s first-half strike at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
While it was the Brazilian who scored his side’s winner, Moises Caicedo is the one being lauded after a terrific display in north London.
Frank, though, thinks Chelsea’s team performance as a whole was excellent and has explained why his side lost to them.
Thomas Frank claims Tottenham ‘couldn’t match’ Chelsea’s energy and intensity
Frank feels that Enzo Maresca’s men were deserved winners on Saturday, claiming that his team could not compete with their energy and intensity.
“First and foremost, I think Chelsea performed very well,” the former Brentford manager told Tottenham’s official club website after the game. “We were the second-best team today. There’s no two ways about that. It was a bad performance.
“So, we’re frustrated about that in a London derby against Chelsea, a game that means the world to the fans, we’re very irritated about it. I think we lacked the energy and intensity. We couldn’t match, for whatever reason, Chelsea on the day.”
Maresca surprised some Chelsea supporters with his team selection for the London derby. Despite scoring midweek, the Chelsea head coach decided to drop Jamie Gittens and Estevao Willian.
In came Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro Neto, with the latter being a key player for Maresca this season. He has started all 10 of the Blues’ Premier League games so far, scoring two goals and providing two assists.
Heading into the match, Neto had never netted against Tottenham, and he was unable to end that record this weekend.
However, the winger and the rest of the Chelsea team will just be delighted that they were able to beat Frank’s side and move up the table.
Enzo Maresca’s warning to Chelsea after Tottenham win
While it was a big win for his side, Maresca is not getting too carried away. Despite being able to keep a clean sheet, the Italian has reminded his side that their defending overall has not been good enough during the current campaign.
Chelsea have conceded 11 goals in 10 games so far, which is not a bad record. Maresca, though, thinks they can do better.
“In any case, I’m happy with the 1-0 and the three points, easily because we kept a clean sheet because it’s what we need for the future,” he told Chelsea’s official club website following the full-time whistle.
“We know that we are a team that is going to score goals but we need to do better defensively.”