Tottenham Hotspur will not sack Thomas Frank in the aftermath of their poor showing in the north London derby against Arsenal. Spurs were torn apart by the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium with Arsenal's Eberechi Eze rubbing salt in the wounds by netting a hat-trick after coming so close to signing for them in the summer. Leandro Trossard was also on target as the hosts romped to a 4-1 victory to extend their lead at the Premier League summit.
Spurs' fourth league defeat of the season comes amid a backdrop of growing restlessness from Spurs supporters at what they perceive as below-par and negative performances. But while Spurs chiefs are aware of the downturn in results, they are keen to give Frank time to turn things around.
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According to The Telegraph, the club's owners, the Lewis family, are clear on their thoughts that Frank's appointment was a long-term project and that remains the case. It is emphasised that the club are not panicking and will not be forced into making a knee-jerk decision. They do have concerns, however.
It is thought that the former Brentford boss' numerous changes have contributed to a series of disappointing performances, while some players are keen for Frank to focus on the strengths of his own side.
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The squad reported to Spurs' training ground on Monday as usual before travelling to France for the club's Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.
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Speaking after his side's defeat to Arsenal, Frank said: "I'm a very big believer that no matter what system you play you can be successful. I completely understand the question and I will always take the full responsibility. The full responsibility will always be on me today when we didn't perform.
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"I picked a team that played 5-4-1, changed it half-time, very clever, one minute into it they scored, 3-0, the rest is history after that. What I would say is that no matter if we played another system we needed to be more aggressive and better in the duels. That doesn't matter to the system but I take responsibility for everything today."
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On Spurs' disappointing results, he added: "That, of course, will always be a concern. I would like the team to have very few bad performances. There will always be average performances, because it's football we're dealing with.
"That's definitely something I need to look into, because today, I felt we were fresh, I think we were ready. The Chelsea game was a little bit on the back end of a tough spell. There could be that but the performance was still bad. Today, I didn't expect us to be not competitive."
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Frank was appointed in the summer as Ange Postecoglou's replacement. Spurs paid £10million compensation to Brentford to seal his services, while Frank penned a three-year deal in north London.
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