Sport | Football
Three things we learned from Tottenham loss as shorthanded Spurs struggle under weight of injury crisis
Thomas Frank left 11 first-team players in London as his side visited Tyneside
Disappointed: Spurs produced an underwhelming performance at St James’ Park
Action Images via Reuters
Matt Verri
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Your matchday briefing on Tottenham, featuring team news and expert analysis from Matt Verri
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If Tottenham are to lift a trophy for the second season in a row, it will not be the Carabao Cup.
A fourth-round trip to Newcastle always looked like being tough and so it proved, as Fabian Schar and Nick Woltemade earned the Magpies a 2-0 win at St James' Park.
This was the first time Spurs have lost on the road this season and it stalls their moment after an impressive win over Everton on Sunday.
With Chelsea visiting north London this weekend, Spurs must quickly pick themselves up.
Injuries leave squad worryingly thin
Thomas Frank spoke at his very first press conference in the summer about wanting Spurs to compete on multiple fronts this season.
With injuries piling up and the squad seeming thinner by the match, he has little chance of doing that right now.
Archie Gray picked up a calf strain in training and Wilson Odobert also failed to make the squad at St James' Park, leaving Frank without 11 first-team players.
Some fans might have wanted the Spurs boss to go stronger with his lineup and start Micky van de Ven and Mohammed Kudus, who were both left on the bench.
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But the pair are crucial to Spurs' season and Van de Ven, in particular, must be managed to avoid a repeat of previous injury problems.
The likes of James Rowswell, Luca Gunter and Callum Olusesi were on the bench for Spurs. With Chelsea visiting north London in just a few days' time, Frank is almost down to the bare bones.
Controversy costs Spurs
It would be hard to argue that Spurs were unfortunate to lose the match but they were aggrieved with the manner of Newcastle's opener.
The situation was avoidable in the first place - a cross was heading safely for Antonin Kinsky but Kevin Danso got in front of him to head it behind.
That corner was delayed as Djed Spence took his boot off and the home fans grew increasingly frustrated with what they perceived to be time-wasting.
Eventually, Spence got to his feet and Sandro Tonali immediately swung in the corner before the Spurs full-back could get into the box to his defensive position.
Spurs players plead their case with Chris Kavanagh after Newcastle’s opener
Action Images via Reuters
Spence could only watch as the ball found Schar's head and he nodded past Kinsky. The Spurs players surrounded the referee and Frank and his coaching staff followed suit with the fourth official.
Richarlison was booked for his protests, while Frank remained in animated conversation on the touchline for several minutes.
Whether Spence would have stopped the goal is up for debate, but Spurs were clearly distracted.
Simons offers encouraging glimpses
There was a bright cameo off the bench against Brighton early in Xavi Simons' Spurs career, but this was his best performance from the start since arriving at the club.
He hit a terrible crossfield pass out of play early on but from that point on, Simons looked the most threatening in a Spurs shirt.
The Dutchman found some lovely positions between the lines and looked dangerous when he turned and ran at the Newcastle defence. One burst late in the half saw Malick Thiaw booked for hacking him down.
Simons' confidence grew and it was positive that he got shots away from the edge of the box in a way he has not been recently.
He was not quite as involved in the second half but there were still nice moments. Spurs' best attack came when Simons played the ball into Pape Matar Sarr's path and Aaron Ramsdale was forced into a brilliant save.
Simons did not come away with an assist or his first Spurs goal, but this was a much more encouraging night for the summer signing.
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