Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has discussed whether the club are a Champions League team and risks the wrath of his supporters after some admissions that have already frustrated them
Thomas Frank has risked the wrath of Tottenham supporters again after claiming that his side are not a Champions League team, due to how they qualified for the competition. It comes at a time when the Dane has struggled to get the fans on board, despite an initially quick start to the campaign.
Supporters have been left frustrated by a lack of identity, especially in an attacking sense, while Frank has come under fire for leading the mindset of the players. At times, the former Brentford manager hasn't helped himself by being brutally honest about the situation, but in a more realistic light - a relative whiplash from the dream Ange Postecoglou had sold fans.
The latest quotes from Frank, when speaking with Sky Sports, has unearthed that brutal honesty once again, but could frustrate the fans. He said, when asked about the project at the club: "Honestly, I think we are in a transition phase, because yes, we are a Champions League club, but are we a Champions League club?
"We only qualified because we won the Europa League. We didn't qualify because we were one of the four or five best clubs in the Premier League last season.
"We finished 17th. And now we need to compete in the Champions League while we're competing in the Premier League, which is the most difficult thing."
While it may be an honest assessment from the head coach, it's the sort of one that caps the ambition that fans have. Many are left hoping to see some improvement, while also having a style of play they can cling onto and put some hope into when results aren't quite there.
Spurs head into the weekend of Premier League action with just 22 points from 17 league games, picking up only one win in their last five. Particular frustration has come with where those points have come, with Tottenham in the top five in the away league table, but in the bottom four of the home league table.
Given that more fans will spend their money to watch games at home than away, the general sentiment and frustration will only build if Frank cannot turn things around. The manager has outlined the challenge ahead of him, before taking on Crystal Palace, which could prove to be another crucial game for his future at the club.
"I think I see a lot of similarities to my first head coach job," he told the press. "Of course, completely different scale. This is, of course, a massive club. One of the biggest clubs in the world and so much focus on it, so that makes it of course bigger and a different challenges, but I see a lot of similarities when I had my first head coach job in Brondby and here where you try to build something over time.
"You inherit something that you need to try to get right with a lot of good people around me and then where this makes it extra challenging is, of course, that we play Champions League and Premier League at the same time. And we try to improve while we are driving 100 miles an hour, but that's part of it.
"That's a good challenge. I think I see a lot of good things we improve, but we, of course, it's all about how can we have even more consistency in performances. It's all about that. How can you create consistency in performances day in, day out? That's the thing we're working on every single day."
Tottenham are in the bottom half of the table again, with Crystal Palace being a crucial clash in their hope of working their way up the table. It will be a challenge, however, given the loss of some key players in the team for a match against a tough opposition.
Cristian Romero and Xavi Simons will both be absent after picking red cards against Liverpool last time out, meaning some tough decisions will have to be made. "I'm confident we can get good results," Frank said, despite the team selection issues he face.
"Of course, you always want a fully fit squad. But right now, we have the players we have available and we need to deal with it and find a way and get good performances out there and results."