Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur went into the final week of the 2018-19 season on different footballing planets.
A 10-game winning streak brought Villa from the bottom half of the Championship table and into the play-offs, and the club’s destiny essentially came down to their final game of the season. After three seasons in English football’s second tier, the 1982 European Cup winners invested heavily to secure promotion, and could have faced financial trouble had they failed to prevail over Derby County at Wembley on May 27.
Tottenham were at their apex. The team may not have been quite as good as a year or two before, but after the dramatic late comeback against Ajax in the Champions League semi-final second leg, the biggest game in the club’s history and the chance to redefine their future awaited.
Villa, who were largely on a similar footing to Spurs through the century’s first decade, collapsed in the 2010s. But while the Premier League grew into a global behemoth, Tottenham rose under Harry Redknapp and Mauricio Pochettino to become a member of the reclassified “Big Six”, a financial grouping as much as a footballing one, setting up a life in England’s most impressive football stadium.
Heading into their final games of that season, the suggestion Villa would achieve parity with Spurs again any time soon, let alone surpass them within seven years, would have sounded ludicrous. As it transpired, Villa won and Tottenham lost that week. Their fortunes have largely mirrored those results ever since.
As Villa waltzed through a passive Spurs midfield for the first goal, and flicked and tricked their way into the box before Morgan Rogers tucked his shot into the bottom corner for their second, the difference in trajectory could not have been any more stark. Tottenham were improved in the second period, but could not repair the damage, with Villa winning 2-1 and progressing into the fourth round. Villa, who sit third in the Premier League on their way to the Champions League for the second time in three years, have left Tottenham behind.
They are not the only ones. Newcastle United, who looked set for relegation before the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund bought the club and invested heavily in the January 2022 transfer window, have overtaken Tottenham on the pitch. While it may seem less sustainable in the long-term, Brentford, Fulham, Sunderland, Brighton & Hove Albion, Everton and Crystal Palace are above Frank’s side in the Premier League table, and several of those have also qualified for the fourth round of the FA Cup. Aside from last season’s Europa League success, Spurs have been outperformed by clubs lower in football’s financial food chain for longer than can be justified.
In that respect, Unai Emery is performing a minor miracle at Villa. Evann Guessand was the only player to join the Birmingham club for a fee in the summer, with profit and sustainability regulations restricting the Spaniard’s ability to strengthen. Zero wins and one goal in their opening five league matches raised questions outside the club, but for how he’s elevated them since joining in October 2022, he’s earned absolute trust from the board and the fans. That faith has paid dividends, with Villa winning 19 of their last 23 matches. In turn, he’s one of few “managers” in the head coach era — a title reflective of the authority he wields.
For Frank, whose target to compete on four fronts is now down to the toughest two (Premier League and Champions League), the job seems to be getting more difficult with every game.
Richarlison pulled up with a hamstring injury in the first half, adding to an injury list which includes Dejan Kulusevski, who will not be assessed again for another three to four weeks, Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall and Mohammed Kudus, who looks set to be sidelined until after the March international break.
While Frank says he is aligned with club chief executive Vinai Venkatesham and sporting directors Johan Lange and Fabio Paratici (who is set to leave after this January window), Cristian Romero’s Instagram post calling for “other people” to speak indicates frustration with the club’s direction, and perhaps the pressure on Frank to answer for those above him, from within the dressing room.
The dressing room, desperate for reinforcements, has its first on the way, with 19-year-old full-back Souza on the verge of completing a move from Brazilian side Santos. He could prove to be a long-term success for the club, but proven quality is necessary to bolster and improve a middling squad.
“Oh, yeah, we all know there’s only one way to have everyone happy,” Frank said in his post-match press conference. “That is performing consistently and winning enough games. That’s the only way.
“And we could see, second half especially, the energy, how they feed off each other, the players and the fans. It was a fantastic experience to be in the middle of it. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get that fantastic comeback, which sometimes kick-starts momentum. And that’s what we are working very hard to do.”
And how Frank needs momentum. The second half brought encouragement, with Spurs seemingly more comfortable attacking the opposition, allowing individuals like Xavi Simons to shine in the chaos, than defending their own goal. Dominic Solanke’s return from a long-term ankle injury brought a huge cheer from the home support, a timely boost of energy with Richarlison seemingly set for a period on the sidelines.
Above him, the onus is on the club’s hierarchy to put right the issues that have contributed to Tottenham falling so far behind their third-round opponents. But with West Ham United and Burnley on the horizon, two eminently winnable games that can push Spurs into a respectable league position, Frank’s focus must solely be on the present.