The Spurs News

Tottenham Hotspur fans have been left furious at Thomas Frank’s second-half substitutions against Aston Villa, especially the withdrawal of the goal scorer, Wilson Odobert.

Spurs are out of the FA Cup in the third round for the first time since the 2013/14 season after being beaten 2-1 by Aston Villa.

Fill in the blank: Tottenham’s current best attack is ____________ + ____________ + ____________ + ____________ +

The North London club produced a frustrating performance in the first 45 minutes as Morgan Rogers and Emi Buenida put them two goals ahead.

In the second half, it was a very different story as Spurs showed great fight to bring the game back to 2-1, with the likes of Wilson Odobert, Mathys Tel and Xavi Simons all showing great promise.

However, substitutions just seemed to kill the team’s momentum, and the Lilywhites fell at the first hurdle in the FA Cup.

Tottenham fans fume at Wilson Odobert’s withdrawal vs Aston Villa

The pressure continues to mount on Thomas Frank at Tottenham following the club’s exit from the FA Cup at the hands of Aston Villa.

The Danish coach’s team showed great fight in the second half; however, he opted to bring on Dane Scarlett and Dominic Solanke for Tel and Odobert, which appeared to kill the team’s momentum.

MORE SPURS STORIES

Tel and Odobert on the wings looked like a strong combination, with the latter scoring the goal to get Spurs back into the game.

The French U-21 duo looked to be dragging the Lilywhites back into the game, but they were taken off, and fans have taken to social media to express their frustration at the manager.

One fan said: “I think we could have won if we had subbed off Gray instead of subbing off Odobert when needing a goal.”

Fill in the blank: Tottenham should ___________ Thomas Frank after losing to Aston Villa…

Would you sack or back the Dane?

“Seems to be a frustrating tactic he keeps deploying. We were getting at them with Odobert, Xavi and Tel behind a striker. He should have stuck to it,” added another.

A third supporter said: “Maybe just maybe he could’ve let the players who were trying on the field. Odobert and Tel were doing great at the wings.”

There was yet more frustration aimed at Frank’s subs: “Players showed up in the second half, and then Frank took Tel and Odobert off and killed us going forward.”

Finally, another added: “Frank ruined the game with his subs. Tel and Odobert were getting the best of their full-backs, and Muani was starting to play better.”

The issue Frank has right now is Tottenham’s growing list of injuries, with Mohammed Kudus and Richarlison recently joining the list.

Xavi Simons was the best player on the pitch during Tottenham vs Aston Villa

Xavi Simons was almost certainly the best player on the pitch, with the Dutch international showing promising signs of showing.

The attacking midfielder completed 30 of his 32 passes and won six duels in total, highlighting his desire to drag the team back into the match.

The 22-year-old has missed the last three games due to suspension, but he showed Spurs what they have been missing.

Frank must now persist with Randal Kolo Muani, Odobert, Tel and Simons as his attacking four moving forward.

One Tottenham Hotspur player who stood out during the team’s defeat at AFC Bournemouth was Mathys Tel, as the Frenchman produced his strongest display to date.

The 20-year-old opened the scoring at the Vitality Stadium with a wicked strike; however, the Lilywhites failed to capitalise on their strong start.

Fill in the blank: During January, Tottenham should _____________ Mathys Tel…

Would you send Mathys Tel on loan or keep him at Tottenham?

Thomas Frank’s team have looked rather underwhelming in attack this season, so any signs of green shoots the manager should be looking to nurture, and that includes Tel.

The French youth international looked rather lively throughout the match and continues to prove why the Spurs boss must utilise him more in N17.

Mathys Tel stands out for Tottenham against Bournemouth

Mathys Tel has proved that he could be one of the players to help save Frank’s job at Tottenham following his display at Bournemouth.

Frank looks under big pressure at Tottenham to turn things around quickly, with just two wins in their last 12 Premier League matches.

The former Bayern Munich star hasn’t really been given much of a look-in this season, but away on the South Coast, he showed much promise yet again.

MORE SPURS STORIES

In the 1-1 draw with Sunderland, Tel impressed Spurs supporters and did the same again in the defeat at Bournemouth.

According to Sofascore, Tel completed the most dribbles with six, the most key passes with three, and the second-highest duels won with 12.

Fill in the blank: Tottenham should ___________ Thomas Frank after losing to Bournemouth…

Would you sack or back the Dane?

The winger was often looking to drive Spurs forward, but right now, the team looks rather disjointed in possession.

Having just lost Mohammed Kudus to injury and sold Brennan Johnson, Tel’s importance to the team has just increased.

His performance in the defeat was one of the few positives Frank can take from an awful evening in the Premier League, and now he must be utilised to better effect.

Thomas Frank must shut down Mathys Tel speculation

Going into the transfer window, Tel was actually linked with a move away from Tottenham on loan, and the club must ensure that move doesn’t happen.

Reports from Turkish outlet, Yeni Akit, claim that the North London club have been open to sending the player out on loan, amid interest from Galatasaray.

But that was before Kudus’ injury, and surely now that will no longer be the case.

The Frenchman has played just 607 minutes for Spurs this season, which is rather sparse, and this must change if Frank is to save his job.