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Overall, Thomas Frank has been more of a positive than a negative for Tottenham Hotspur, and it's easy to forget just how poor Spurs were in the Premier League last season under Ange Postecoglou because of how much the Europa League title triumph emotionally papered over the steady downpour of horrible losses.

Spurs are dropping too many points against opponents they should be beating, though, and so while Frank is more of a positive than a negative, it still feels like he and Spurs are playing well below the standard they should be setting as a club.

There are a few major flaws in what Frank is doing as a coach, but the biggest is the way he's utilizing his young players. Simply put, Frank has a lot of highly promising talents at Tottenham, and he isn't putting them in a position to succeed.

Let's start with the midfield. Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray are two of the most talented young midfielders on the entire planet and have played well whenever given a chance in their preferred roles. Frank has almost never given them starts, with Bergvall's casting aside being particular unforgivable when you look back at how amazing he was in the 2024/25 season - his first as a Spur.

Tottenham's young attackers deserve better

Even Pape Matar Sarr has been cheaped off. The Senegalese international looked like Spurs biggest breakout star to start the season. Now, he's struggling for starts, too, even though, like the others, he's great when he does play. And the Spurs midfield isn't exactly flourishing without him.

Further up, there are still issues. Xavi SImons has been continually screwed over by Frank, forced to the periphery of games because nobody in midfield can get him the ball in dangerous situations. And that, funnily enough, goes back to Frank not playing Gray or Bergvall in the middle of the park. Simons looks like a transfer bust because he's a playmaker with nobody to hook up with, and Frank's surprsingly cowardly tactics are not doing Simons any favors either.

Forwards Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel came up huge recently, bailing Frank out of what would have been a humiliating loss to Manchester United. They were impact subs and have been the best left winger and striker, respectively, on the team this season. Yet they remain fighting for starts with Frank preferring Richarlison, of all people, to seemingly both.

Positives have been few and far between for Tottenham Hotspur lately, as their injury crisis has only deepened over the past week. Just as Cristian Romero returned from his multi-game injury, another crucial player to Spurs success, new right winger Mohammed Kudus, went down for multiple games with an injury of his own.

Kudus could not play on Saturday against Manchester United as Spurs stumbled to a 2-2 draw with Ruben Amorim's men. But the good news is that there is optimism Kudus will be out there in two weeks against arch rivals Arsenal in the North London Derby after getting the full international break to rest away from the Ghanaian national team.

The Kudus injury news isn't the only positive for Tottenham to track. On Saturday, star striker Randal Kolo Muani had to leave the game at half time with a jaw injury. At first, Spurs fans were told it was much ado about nothing, but, of course, the smart and cynical ones didn't listen, knowing full well this team is cursed.

Tottenham get a positive twist

Well lo and behold, the previously spotlessly healthy Kolo Muani had suffered a jaw injury requiring potentially months on the sideline, thus sending the already tenuous Tottenham striker situation into an outright tailspin.

Yet it appears things may not be so bad after all. Top Tottenham beat reporter Alasdair Gold of Football.London is now reporting that a specialist has stated that Kolo Muani did not, in fact, fracture his jaw. In a positve twist, Kolo Muani will not require surgery to repair his jaw, so the initially reported timeline of six to eight weeks for a return is inaccurate. Kolo Muani can be expected to return sooner than that, though the situation remains fluid and an exact return date is unclear.

Now, it would not seem reasonable to expect the French striker to make his return to the Tottenham lineup for the North London Derby, but maybe a return in less than a month isn't off the table. Tottenham have already missed Kolo Muani for several games in his first season - and potentially only, given he is just here on loan from Paris - due to a dead leg.

But when Spurs have watched Kolo Muani play, he has clearly looked a cut above Richarlison at the striker position with the sort of fluidity and passing and dribbling ability up front that the team have been missing. It will be huge to have him back sooner than later.

There's a lot of time - nearly two weeks, in fact - until Tottenham Hotspur face Arsenal FC in the North London Derby on Nov. 23 at the Emirates Stadium, but, as of right now, Spurs will be coming into that matchup as major underdogs.

Once again, Spurs couldn't get the job done this past weekend in the Premier League, dropping more points with a 2-2 draw against Manchester United. Although Man United have improved markedly over the past few weeks, this was a game Spurs should have won. They had even come back after inspired performances off the bench from young forwards Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel, but a brief moment of madness and poor marking in the final minutes doomed Spurs.

That said, Odobert's and Tel's strong displays in the last half hour will be key takeaways for Frank and the club to bring with them into the derby. These two stepped up when the others didn't in the absence of Mohammed Kudus, who has quickly become the second most important player on the team after world-class center back Cristian Romero.

Tottenham can't lose him vs. Arsenal

Kudus has been sorely missed these last couple of weeks with an unspecified injury, and with Randal Kolo Muani now likely out for a few weeks with a jaw injury, Spurs doubly can't afford the Ghanaian to be out for the North London Derby.

According to Thomas Frank himself, via The Spurs Express, he is "very confident" the young right winger will be out there for Tottenham next, next Sunday against Arsenal, ready to be available and fully recovered from this ailment.

Spurs will be going up against an Arsenal back line that is so good it is approaching historic levels, and without their most dynamic threat and wide creator, it could be a long day. Tel, Odobert, and maybe even Xavi Simons are capable of cooking some quality, but against a team like Arsenal, no Kudus would be almost akin to showing up to lose, given they've had matches in the past approaching 0.00 xG.

Tottenham fans remember that 0.05 xG performance the previous weekend against Chelsea in their first real derby (apologies West Ham) of the 2025/26 season under Frank, and repeating that kind of performance against Arsenal would be an embarrassment almost beyond reproach. So Spurs fans getting word from Frank that Kudus is in line to return is massive, because it's a sign of hope.

Tottenham's injury woes have failed to disappear despite the change in manager, and it looks like Thomas Frank will be short-handed in attack for a gauntlet run after the international break.

The third interval of 2025/26 arrives at a pretty good time for Spurs, given their litany of absences, but it remains to be seen how many of the currently stricken stars will be back fit for the North London Derby in two weeks.

Our bitter rivals, meanwhile, are projected to have the bulk of their injured players available for the Lilywhites' visit.

The likes of Cristian Romero, Destiny Udogie, and Wilson Odobert have shaken off minor knocks recently and made their respective comebacks, but Spurs seemingly have a quota of injuries they must fulfill at any one given time.

The latest to succumb is Randal Kolo Muani, who could be out for the rest of the calendar year.

Randal Kolo Muani suffers jaw fracture and could miss two months

Kolo Muani is yet to score for the club since joining from Paris Saint-Germain on loan, but the Frenchman has impressed in recent outings with his efficient hold-up work and associative play.

He was starting to build some momentum in Lilywhite, having missed a few weeks at the start of the season with a dead leg. However, the versatile forward is poised for another frustrating absence after fracturing his jaw in Saturday's 2-2 draw with Manchester United.

Kolo Muani earned a third consecutive start but was forced off at half-time because of the problem, which Fabrice Hawkins describes as "more serious" than initially thought. He could be out for as long as eight weeks.

Kolo Muani has already missed more games through injury at Spurs than he has his entire senior career, and the talented Frenchman will sit out for significant clashes after the break against Arsenal, parent club PSG, Newcastle, as well as Liverpool in December. We may not see him again until the new year, which is a big blow for Frank's Spurs.

The Dane is hopeful that Dominic Solanke will return before the year draws to a close, while Richarlison will hope that his stoppage-time header, which somehow proved not to be the winner, proves reinvigorating after a barren run.

Tottenham Hotspur can't go into the November international break thinking their last showing against Manchester United, a 2-2 draw, was a positive one. These are games Spurs should be winning if they want to start pushing into Premier League title contention, and their inability to play a complete game or have week to week consistency remains alarming.

That being said, Spurs did have some key silver linings to take away from the draw with Manchester United, particularly the game changing substitutions of Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert. Tel scored and Odobert directly caused the second, as both young men showed their quality and ability to help elevate the team against quality opposition.

So when the Premier League returns after the November international break and Tottenham have to go up against hated North London rivals Arsenal, who are clearly the best team in the Premier League right now with a historically strong defense, Thomas Frank knows who he has to turn to.

Randal Kolo Muani injured his jaw against Man United and is out. Richarlison is beyond awful. Brennan Johnson is pretty much just as bad as Richarlison. Mohammed Kudus is the guaranteed starter on the right wing and will be back. Xavi Simons is still the solution at the No. 10.

A young man with real quality up top

The left wing and striker positions are the ones up for grabs, or, at least, they were. Because right now, especially with Kolo Muani and Dominic Solanke injured, the jobs are clearly for Odobert and Tel to seal.

If Tottenham want to have even a prayer at beating Arsenal, then they have to start Tel at striker and Odobert on the wing. Have to. Odobert has been a bright spot on the wings despite getting little mainstream fanfare, and he's showing Spurs fans that he has the tools to be the star they envisioned when they signed him from Burnley last year

Meanwhile, Tel has shown real quality as a No. 9, again, despite not getting much national praise. His goal against Manchester United was full of individual class, between the touch and the finish. Tel and Odobert offer a different level of technical quality and athleticism to their competition, and Tel, in particular, has had some real fine moments in front of goal when trusted as a striker, between the win over Leeds and the draw with the Red Devils.

Arsenal will be favored, but Tottenham can surprise them. Key to their ability to get an upset win will be trusting these two young players, who just showed Frank that they are the best men for the job right now.

In truth, those game changing substitutions should not have been left on the bench either, as Thomas Frank got his starting lineup selection all wrong. You know it's a mistake when you see Richarlison and Brennan Johnson on the team sheet on either flank, with Djed Spence being the one behind Richy at the left back position.

Tottenham were plodding and anemic for much of the game, but the inclusions of young wingers Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel were the jolts Spurs needed to play respectable football again. Tel and Odobert have been highly promising this season despite the criticism, and although Thomas Frank may already be figuring out that Odobert is a difference maker, he still seems slow to recognize Tel's quality.

Thomas Frank already snubbed him badly

Frank already snubbed Tel by leaving him off his Champions League squad, and although Tel fought his way back to produce key moments, such as a great day in a win over Leeds before the October international fixtures, he's remained on the periphery.

Well, Tel changed the game again, scoring out of nowhere on Saturday against Manchester United to show that he has more goal threat than either Richarlison or Randal Kolo Muani. At this point, 'it's hard to argue against Tel being the striker when his work against Leeds and Man United has been far beyond what his competition have been capable of at the No. 9 spot recently.

Tel is yet another young Tottenham player who is being discarded by Frank, and yet is honestly one of the best options for the starting lineup. He has his flaws, and in an ideal world, Spurs would have a better player to start at striker.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank once again hooked Xavi Simons off the pitch early in the game, and even though Spurs ended up doing better in the scoreboard without the Dutchman, there is no question in the minds of fans that Simons was basically scaepgoated by the coach.

Simons has had a rough start to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium since moving from RB Leipzig to Spurs this summer, and rival fanbases are having a field day with his lack of goal contributions. Arsenal fans are laughing because Spurs went after their big playmaking signing Eberechi Eze first. Meanwhile, Chelsea fans are going after Spurs here because they were the ones who were very close to signing Simons before Spurs got more serious and swooped in.

But Simons hasn't been the problem or even bad at all. He was great against Copenhagen, for example, and while he has still not been up to snuff yet as he adjusts to the actual Premier League, it's hard to fault him for what happened out there against Manchester United.

That's all on Thomas Frank. Although Frank has done a great job as Spurs coach thus far and honestly has too many haters at this point, he does deserve a fair bit of constructive criticism, too, and no player has been burned more by the new coach than the new attacking midfielder.

Thomas Frank gave Xavi Simons nothing to work with

Simons had nowhere to go with the ball against Manchester United, and that's not a new complaint either. Time and time again, Simons gets the ball in a sea of opposition jerseys, clamped down with no time or space or options to pass.

It's not like the players around him are making themselves available either. For example, Tottenham started Richarlison and Brennan Johnson on either flank for Simons to play off of in transition, and, well, that's basically like being all on your own, because Johnson and Richy are horrendous all around and are in the midst of seasons in which they are playing themselves out of the team entirely.

Everyone knows Tottenham Hotspur need to inject more attacking talent into their squad in the 2026 transfer windows, either winter or summer - or even both. Spurs tried their best to upgrade their attacking options this past summer for new coach Thomas Frank, signing young gems Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus before springing a deadline day loan deal for PSG striker Randal Kolo Muani.

So far, Kudus has been a revelation on that right wing for Tottenham, while Simons and Kolo Muani have been assets for Spurs overall. But Tottenham still need more after already missing out on Manchester City winger Savinho before the deadline closed.

The thing is, Tottenham are starting to realize that they have holes elsewhere in the squad that were not addressed in the summer transfer window, even beyond the attack. Briefly, Spurs thought about signing a left back as cover for Destiny Udogie, with Napoli's Mathias Olivera among the names on their wishlist.

Tottenham didn't end up signing anyone, but 11 games into the fresh Premier League season, it's pretty clear that Spurs are going to have to sign a quality left back before long. Djed Spence simply is not cutting it as cover for Udogie, whose injury issues these last few weeks have been a bigger blow to Tottenham's overall team than they would have otherwise anticipated.

Tottenham's cover is not good enough

Spence is a right back, not a left back, and Tottenham have pretended for far too long that the England international is a viable option on that side of the formation. When Spence starts for Udogie, the entire Tottenham attack falls apart, because the left flank becomes a complete non factor. And that puts far too much strain on a young left winger to then do the job of two men.

Simply put, no matter how you try to dress it up, Spence isn't good enough to play meaningful minutes for Tottenham on that left flank. At best, he is right back cover for Pedro Porro. At worst, Udogie gets hurt yet again and then Spurs have to start Spence on the left flank, and if they are going up against a good enough team, it's basically like being a man down.

Tottenham won't have too many options to work with on the transfer market, because good left backs are highly coveted. But if Spurs can find a proven veteran who can actually play the position with a respectable left foot, then that's enough to be a substantial upgrade on Spence.

Any sliver of injury news is bound to be met with pessimism by Tottenham Hotspur supporters, because over the last few years, no team has been hit harder by bad injury luck than the Lilywhites. They were absolutely ravaged under Ange Postecoglou, and even though his playing style was pinned as the main issue, the luck hasn't gotten much better under a more pragmatic Thomas Frank.

Against Manchester United on Saturday afternoon at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the Lilywhites had to hook Randal Kolo Muani at the half after the striker took a blow to the jaw. He should be fine, but he will need scans on Sunday to confirm the extent of the injury.

Meanwhile, Spurs supporters were even more concerned about Cristian Romero. The superstar center back is the team's best overall player, and if there were any doubts about him being the most important, those were answered quite emphatically by just how poorly Spurs were without him in the starting lineup.

That's because Romero had just recovered from an injury, so when fans saw him getting subbed out of the game late for third center back Kevin Danso, alarm bells immediately rang in their heads. Any potential for an injury to Romero would be devastating, especially with Spurs struggling to put away mediocre opposition like Manchester United.

Thomas Frank gives his assessment

The good news is that Romero doesn't appear to be injured and may have just been taken out of the Man United game as a precaution. Tottenham manager Thomas Frank told reporters after Spurs 2-2 draw that Cristian Romero is "fine", via The Spurs Express.

Tottenham fans will obviously stay tuned for any changes in Romero's status or any more concrete updates from Frank, but that sound is the collective sigh of relief of the entire fanbase. Romero is vital to not only how Tottenham defend, but also how they possess the ball, build play up, maintain their shape, and even how they drive forward to start attacks.

Tottenham Hotspur were seconds away from jubilation and a come from behind victory against Manchester United at home on Matchday 11 of the 2025/26 Premier League season, but they ended up leaving Matthijs de Ligt unmarked at the death despite having a man advantage due to Benjamin Sesko's injury.

Richarlison ended up scoring the winning goal by virtue of a fortunate flick off a brilliant Wilson Odobert effort, but many Spurs supporters felt he should not have even been on the pitch at that point in the game.

After a disasterclass in the Champions League despite Spurs winning 4-0 over Copenhagen, Richy drew the start on the left wing and was predictably terrible. Yet at the half, it was striker Randal Kolo Muani who got hooked off instead of Richarlison, and that had Spurs fans ready to riot. Richarlison may have saved his day with that goal, but no true Spurs fan will be fooled by that performance.

But the bigger concern right now is Kolo Muani. As it turns out, Thomas Frank had a very legitimate reason for substituting the promising French striker, as Kolo Muani actually suffered an injury and had to be taken out of the game.

Tottenham man may be injured

According to top French journalist Fabrice Hawkins of RMC Sport, Randal Kolo Muani suffered a blow to his jaw during Tottenham's game against Manchester United and needed to be taken off at the half for that reason. He will now underdo scans on Sunday to determine if he has an injury or not.

The good news is that Hawkins says Tottenham aren't currently concerned about Kolo Muani's status, so they don't believe he is injured. Blows to the jaw or any part of the head can be serious, but if a player isn't obviously hurt, it's not as concerning, as, say, a knee or hamstring injury.

That said, Kolo Muani was hurt enough to necessitate being substituted, and Tottenham fans know better than to count on lady luck. Expecting the worse has become par for the course for Spurs supporters at this point, and with various forwards, including star man Mohammed Kudus, already injured, Spurs fans will wait with baited breath until they actually hear words of 100 percent clearance for Kolo Muani after the scans. Going forward, he is going to be the guy at striker until Dominic Solanke finally comes back, because Richarlison's fluke goal won't save his job.