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According to reports, a Tottenham Hotspur chief has ‘demanded’ head coach Thomas Frank to be sacked after the 3-2 loss against AFC Bournemouth.

Spurs are on a dire run of form under Frank, with the Premier League side only winning three of their previous 13 matches in all competitions.

The north London outfit are currently three games without a win in the Premier League and suffered a late 3-2 loss against Bournemouth on Tuesday. The Cherries were on a ten-match winless run heading into the game.

This leaves Frank as one of two leading contenders to be the next Premier League manager sacked, with Tottenham performing no better currently than they were under Ange Postecoglou. They are 14th in the table after 21 matches.

Performances have been poor, but another of Frank‘s issues is that his approach to football has not clicked with supporters, who have demanded more excitement.

READ: Who will be next Tottenham manager if Thomas Frank is sacked? Amorim, Maresca in the hunt

Now, an insider on X who is renowned for claiming there are ’emergency meetings’ at underperforming clubs after they suffer another setback, with this the case shortly following Tottenham’s loss to Bournemouth.

They said on X: ‘BOMBSHELL EXCLUSIVE AT TOTTENHAM!

‘INSIDERS AT SPURS HQ REVEAL: ANOTHER EMERGENCY CRISIS MEETING CALLED FOR TOMORROW OVER THOMAS FRANK FUTURE!

‘ONE TOP OFFICIAL IS FURIOUSLY DEMANDING HE BE SACKED IMMEDIATELY.’

Especially as this has been dramatised in all capitals, we all need to take this report with a handful of salt, but it is clear that results and performances need to improve if Frank is going to remain at Spurs beyond this season.

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Frank has also faced criticism after being pictured drinking from an Arsenal cup before the Bournemouth match, but he has insisted that he “did not notice it”.

After the match, Frank said: “I definitely did not notice it. It would be completely stupid of me to take it if I knew.

“It’s a little bit sad that I need to be asked about it. I would never do something that stupid.”

The same insider mentioned earlier has also commented on this situation, claming a ‘full investigation’ is expected.

They said on X: Exclusive: A full investigation will take place into Thomas Frank drinking from an Arsenal-branded cup at last night’s Bournemouth v @SpursOfficial match.

‘CCTV footage 🎥 may be requested. We understand the @Arsenal branded cup was left over from the weekend when Arsenal visited Bournemouth.

‘The key questions: Was Thomas Frank purposely set up by someone? Did Thomas Frank know and do it on purpose?’

The Premier League truly delivered on a jam-packed Wednesday with eight matches, including Darren Fletcher’s Manchester United at Burnley.

He probably ruined his chances of landing the permanent job at Old Trafford. Newcastle rose above them in the table because they are ludicrous. But the day’s other games were a bit daft too.

Wednesday’s Premier League results

Man City 1-1 Brighton

Everton 1-1 Wolves

Bournemouth 3-2 Spurs

Fulham 2-1 Chelsea

Crystal Palace 0-0 Aston Villa

Brentford 3-0 Sunderland

Burnley 2-2 Man Utd

There was lots on the line regarding the Premier League title race, the race for the Champions League places, and the battle at the bottom of the table. Even the mid-table fodder have plenty to play for, with little separating Chelsea in fifth (31 points) and Crystal Palace all the way down in 14th (27 points) ahead of the night’s action.

Amazingly, the least interesting thing this season has been the relegation battle, even if West Ham being involved makes it slightly more compelling.

That being said, Wolves are looking to pull off one of the greatest escapes after winning for the first time this season on matchday 20. They travelled to Everton after being smashed 4-2 by Brentford, who hosted fellow overachievers Sunderland.

More eyes were on Tottenham Hotspur at Bournemouth and Chelsea at Fulham, though we were bitterly disappointed to see Liam Rosenior in the stands rather than the dugout.

In regard to the title race, Manchester City dropped more points at home, while Aston Villa couldn’t find a way past Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Frank sack inevitable as Dr Tottenham prescribe winless Bournemouth

The writing is on the wall for Thomas Frank.

It’s been on the wall for a long time, to be honest.

A trip to Bournemouth, winless in 11 Premier League matches, presented an opportunity for a statement win. Instead, it might be the final nail in the coffin as Dr Tottenham did what they do best: hand a team in dire need of a win exactly that.

The football is rubbish. The supporters – and seemingly the players – are totally disconnected from Frank. It’s surely a case of when, not if, he gets sacked.

Joao Palhinha scoring an overhead kick is the only witchcraft that will benefit Frank this week. He’s a dead man walking.

What rubs salt in the wounds is that Antoine Semenyo scored the injury-time winner after rejecting Spurs. What a final touch for Bournemouth, by the way.

Liam Rosenior already rueing his forced BlueCo promotion

Liam Rosenior didn’t have a choice when it came to replacing Enzo Maresca as Chelsea boss. If he did have the choice, he probably would’ve said yes, because what an incredible opportunity, but he’s smart enough to know it’s a huge risk taking on what seems to be an impossible job.

The 41-year-old was in attendance to watch his new players lose 2-1 at Fulham. He watched Marc Cucurella get sent off, the Blues’ fifth red card in the Premier League this season. At 11 v 11, Fulham were, as they have been for most of this season, passive and vulnerable. But once they had a player advantage, they were much the better side, and a one-goal win actually flattered Chelsea.

Harry Wilson thought he had put Fulham ahead but was narrowly offside, having no luck after a slice of misfortune against Liverpool. But Raul Jimenez gave the hosts a deserved lead before Liam Delap’s equaliser. Unfortunately for Chelsea, they fell behind again courtesy of Wilson’s eighth goal involvement in his previous nine games, and that was that.

Chelsea’s season is threatening to unravel even further, and Rosenior is tasked with ensuring that doesn’t happen. He needs to get a tune out of Cole Palmer, who was disappointing yet again when he really had to prove a point.

It’s a big ol’ job, and one we have no idea if Rosenior is good enough for, but we’ll soon find out. Despite the youth of his squad, the club’s hierarchy want instant results. The rookie Premier League boss has been thrown in so deep, so early – likely against his own wishes – and what he watched at Craven Cottage won’t fill him with much confidence.

Congratulations to Premier League champions Arsenal

The biggest winners of the night were Arsenal, who didn’t even play.

Manchester City dropped points for the third game in a row, and Aston Villa also failed to win at Crystal Palace. The gap between the league leaders and their closest rivals is now five points, with a game in hand to be played tomorrow against Liverpool. It might only be January, but win on Thursday and Arsenal have one hand on the trophy that has eluded them for over two decades.

Pep Guardiola will rue the injuries to key defenders Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol. Recalling Max Alleyne from his Watford loan and throwing him straight into the starting XI against Brighton was possibly a message to the board to sign Marc Guehi.

Brighton were wasteful and will feel they should’ve won, but City will feel the same after a couple of cock-ups from Erling Haaland.

It’s not often you say that Haaland’s misses cost City, but they really did on a night when Guardiola’s side should’ve put pressure on Arsenal. Champions-elect Arsenal, that is.

Keith Andrews for Manager of the Season?

Elsewhere, Brentford hammered Sunderland to go a bloody fifth, and Wolves were unfortunate not to win at Everton, who ended the match with nine men after a straight red card for Michael Keane and two yellows for Jack Grealish.

Keith Andrews is genuinely a contender for Premier League Manager of the Season, with Brentford fifth in the table after such dramatic summer change. But the biggest moment of their win over Sunderland was a disgraceful Enzo Le Fee penalty miss. A panenka attempt, comfortably saved by Caoimhín Kelleher minutes before Brentford went 2-0 up, was the turning point. And there’s no way Le Fee should take another penalty this season. Jeez, it was bad.

As for Everton, we don’t know what to say or what to expect, really. It was another calamitous night from the most unpredictable team in the Premier League.

Keane’s red card was a shocker as well, pulling Tolu Arokodare’s hair in an aerial duel, Peter Crouch v Brent Sancho style. Ouch.

Wolves, meanwhile, are now unbeaten in three games and on seven points. And Ruben Amorim lost his job for failing to beat this superteam? FFS, Jason Wilcox. What have you done?

A philosophical question emerged during the latest misery Spurs inflicted upon their fans in what is already looking like a dreary waste of everyone’s time.

At Brentford in the week, Spurs started slowly, remained tethered in second gear, never got going at all, and finished the game as slowly as they started it. They got a point out of it because Brentford decided to start 2026 in much the same way.

Obviously, that was quite bad from Spurs. But in a way isn’t it even worse to spend 45 minutes pointedly not doing that – to spend the whole first half on the front foot, pressing high up the pitch, looking to attack and put an opponent under pressure – only to then fall back on the whole unwatchably dreary schtick and have to settle for another drab and uninspiring point to show for it?

We really do think it might be worse. There’s something enormously apt about it feeling like Frank is under even more pressure after a three-match unbeaten run than he was before it. It’s almost impressive to make collecting actual real-life Premier League points this soul-destroying.

The first half was perhaps Spurs’ best first half of any home Premier League game this season. That is a tremendously low bar, arguably in fact underground, but still. They really were okay in that first 45.

Not good, obviously. Spurs have entirely forgotten what good looks like over recent months. They still played like a team of strangers when tasked with piecing together a coherent attack, but there was at least a sense of them all being on the same page in at least wanting to give that a try.

Mathys Tel was bright but wayward. Richarlison ran around a lot. Wilson Odobert tried his best. There was a willingness, at least. There was intent.

They deserved their lead, even if that lead came, as the occasional goals Spurs still score these days now apparently must, from a deep corner launched beyond the far post. It was peak Frankball: a deep corner met by one centre-back, played to the other centre-back and turned in by Ben Davies.

Spurs’ leading goalscorer in 2026, ladies and gentlemen. A man who played in the last league game between these two almost nine years ago, alongside Vincent Janssen and Michel Vorm.

You can’t help but enjoy that moment for him. Today’s goal we mean, not playing in a 0-0 draw at the Stadium of Light alongside Vincent Janssen and Michel Vorm in 2017. The Spurs crowd – spectators who get comfortably the Premier League’s worst value for money, enjoyed that, at least, with chants of ‘Davies again, ole, ole’ and ‘He scores when he wants’ breaking out.

At half-time it was for once easy to feel relatively, cautiously positive about Spurs. And then Frank got hold of them. And then the second half happened. And it was absolutely rotten.

Everything encouraging about the first half was abandoned entirely. The plan throughout the second half was to desperately protect that 1-0 lead at all costs and if a goal happened to arrive by magic on the break then, well, okay that’s fine, we suppose. But on no account were Spurs going to actively seek further goals, not when already 1-0 up against a newly promoted side.

Even when that newly promoted side is proving as adept as Sunderland, it’s still just miserably small-time.

Sunderland, of course, having barely got into the game at all in the first half, were enormously encouraged by this change in the script and duly dominated the second half. They are not, frankly, a team that particularly requires such encouragement.

The alarms rang loudly and repeatedly before Brian Brobbey eventually lashed home a superb and richly deserved equaliser after neat interplay with Enzo Le Fee.

It’s no coincidence that it was those two to the fore, either. Both had been spectators in the first half, before becoming the game’s main characters throughout the second. Le Fee had himself struck the post with a header moments before creating the equaliser for Brobbey.

The goal came eight minutes after Frank had replaced Wilson Odobert with Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray with Joao Palhinha. No bad players there, but changes that nevertheless send a message to the opposition. A slight nudge towards the defensive from a team already retreating into themselves.

A little further encouragement that their own back door needed that little bit less attention.

Perhaps the most damning thing of all was how little the equalising goal changed Spurs’ approach. Holding on to three points simply became holding on to one. There was no great renewed urgency to go and win the game again, with Sunderland holding the momentum and looking the likelier to nick it late on.

That’s the thing with Frank’s obsession with eliminating risk. It so easily becomes the biggest risk of all. Spurs have been here before during Jose Mourinho’s destroy and exit when encouraging 1-0 leads turning into dispiriting 1-1 draws was the norm. There can be no argument that putting all your chips on 1-0 can possibly represent the safest bet. That’s true of anyone, but especially Spurs.

Once you’ve switched off entirely as an attacking team, it’s maddeningly difficult to flick that switch back on again. By the time Spurs did, it was already injury time, leaving them only a few desperate minutes to try and win another corner from which to maybe get the winner. The best they managed was a throw, and Bergvall dropped it.

A moment to sum up an afternoon to sum up a season. We remain entirely unconvinced anyone involved benefits from allowing this to continue.

Real Madrid are looking at the possibility of signing Tottenham defender Pedro Porro as competition for Trent Alexander-Arnold, according to reports.

Spurs are having a bit of a disappointing season due to inconsistent form and a number of poor performances under Thomas Frank.

Tottenham have won just four of their last 14 matches in all competitions, although three of those wins have come in their last six games.

And now the Tottenham hierarchy are looking to support Frank in the January transfer market as they look to help him push Spurs up the Premier League.

Tottenham are in the market for a winger and a midfielder but there is also interest in their own players with rumours that Real Madrid want one of their defenders.

Real Madrid account Madrid Universal have claimed that Porro, who has made 28 appearances in all competitions for Frank’s side this season, is a target for Los Blancos as they ‘weigh’ up a potential move.

READ: Best wide forwards available for transfer in January includes Arsenal man and Gunners targets

The report adds that the Spanish giants ‘believe that Alexander-Arnold needs competition, and they want a Spaniard as reinforcement’.

Tottenham were one of the sides who made an enquiry for Antoine Semenyo before the news emerged that Manchester City have become his preference.

And Spurs are still on the hunt for an attacker with our friends at TEAMtalk insisting that Tottenham are ‘looking to make a game-changing signing in attack’.

The north London club have identified Monaco star Maghnes Akliouche ‘as a player with a very high ceiling’ and, despite finding it difficult to negotiate a deal in the summer, Spurs ‘have kept a watching brief with a view to signing him this year’.

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* Spurs top scorers against the Big Six: Richarlison only behind one player in current squad

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Monaco are struggling in ninth position in Ligue 1 this season and TEAMtalk add that their poor form ‘might mean the player is more inclined to push for a move this time’ if Tottenham make a winter move.

In the summer, Akliouche commented on rumours of a move away from Monaco, he said: “I am under contract at Monaco and I hope that I will be here next season, why not?”

Speaking in October, after Tottenham drew 0-0 with Monaco in the Champions League, Akliouche said of the speculation linking him to Tottenham: “I thought it was very flattering to have these kind of stories and links, but I’m a Monaco player and I’m playing against Spurs, so I will give my best.

“In terms of playing in the Premier League, why not? We will see in the future, but [against Spurs] I will give my all.”

Football is very good at talking about the future. About growth, global reach and what the game might look like in five or 10 years’ time.

It has been slower to confront the environmental cost of that future, even as the climate conversation has moved from abstract warning to daily reality.

Sustainability in football is no longer a fringe issue or a nice add-on for glossy reports; it is about how the sport operates, what it consumes and what behaviours it normalises.

As we begin the new year, here are six sustainability-related measures Pledgeball would like to see embedded more deeply across the game in 2026.

More clubs following Tottenham’s lead on sustainable matchday food

Tottenham Hotspur have shown that sustainable matchday catering does not have to mean compromise. Their emphasis on plant-based options, responsibly sourced ingredients and a reduced reliance on high-carbon foods has set a benchmark in English football. Crucially, it has been done at scale, in one of the largest stadiums in the country, without alienating supporters.

The hope for 2026 is that more clubs recognise matchday food as a genuine lever for change, not a token gesture. What fans eat before kick-off matters, and football has the reach to shift habits simply by making the sustainable choice the easiest and most appealing one.

Find out how you can help you team rise up the Pledgeball League table

Wider adoption of ‘green hedging’ in the transfer market

The transfer market is rarely associated with environmental responsibility, yet it carries a significant carbon footprint through international travel, scouting networks and commercial activity. Wolves’ exploration of “green hedging”, investing in environmental projects to offset the emissions linked to major transfers, offers a glimpse of how clubs might begin to take responsibility for that impact.

It is not a silver bullet and offsetting should never replace reduction, but it represents an important shift in mindset. By 2026, we would like to see more clubs at least measuring the environmental cost of their transfer activity and being transparent about how they attempt to mitigate it.

Greater investment in solar panels and rainwater reuse at stadiums and training grounds

If football wants visible, long-term sustainability gains, infrastructure is the place to look. Manchester City’s academy, which incorporates extensive solar panel installations, is often cited as an example of how renewable energy can be baked into elite football facilities from the ground up.

Rainwater harvesting systems, already used in parts of the game, remain underutilised given their potential to reduce water waste and operating costs.

These are not flashy signings or headline-grabbing initiatives, but they are the kind of investments that quietly reshape a club’s environmental footprint for decades. By 2026, stadiums and training grounds without such features should feel outdated rather than aspirational.

Club-led climate education within academies and among fans

Football clubs sit at the heart of their communities, with unparalleled access to young people and a platform that reaches millions. Yet structured climate education within academies is still inconsistent, and fan engagement often stops at surface-level messaging.

Our wish is that clubs begin to treat environmental literacy as part of their responsibility, integrating it into youth development programmes and community outreach. For supporters, this could mean clearer information about sustainable travel, food and consumption choices linked to the club. The aim is not to lecture, but to use football’s cultural pull to make climate-aware behaviour feel normal rather than niche.

An end to the waste caused by the constant churn of kits

Few aspects of modern football illustrate its waste problem more clearly than the relentless release of new kits. Annual, and sometimes mid-season, launches encourage fans to discard perfectly wearable shirts in favour of marginal design tweaks, fuelling textile waste and fast-fashion habits.

Did you know, 100,000 tonnes of sportswear ends up in landfill every year in the UK alone?

Some clubs have experimented with longer kit cycles or recycling schemes, but these remain exceptions rather than the rule. In 2026 – fanciful though it may be! – we would like to see a slowdown: fewer launches, longer use periods and meaningful reuse or take-back programmes. Shirts should be symbols of identity and continuity, not disposable commodities.

More clubs sign up to the Pledgeball Sustainable Travel Charter

Travel remains the biggest source of football’s carbon emissions, particularly when it comes to journeys on matchdays. The Pledgeball Sustainable Travel Charter is a voluntary framework developed by Pledgeball in partnership with the Football Supporters’ Association to help football clubs reduce the environmental impact of team travel by prioritising more sustainable transport options such as trains and buses over short-haul flights.

The initiative responds to concerns about the high carbon emissions generated by frequent flying and offers guidance that balances sustainability with player wellbeing, fixture timing and security considerations. By signing up, clubs publicly commit to greener travel practices, setting a visible example for fans and other teams. Fourteen EFL clubs are already on board, but more joining the charter could normalise low-carbon travel and significantly lower football’s overall transport footprint, while inspiring supporters to adopt similar habits.

None of these wishes require football to reinvent itself overnight. They ask instead for consistency, ambition and a willingness to see sustainability as central rather than peripheral. For a sport obsessed with marginal gains, the irony is that environmental responsibility may be one of the clearest opportunities football has to make a meaningful difference, one practical decision at a time.

Tottenham Hotspur have already confirmed two exits, including Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace for around £35million.

The 2026 winter transfer window is open from January 1 to February 2.

Here is every completed Premier League deal in the 2026 January window.

Arsenal completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: Harrison Dudziak (loan, Braintree)

Aston Villa completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Alysson (£8.7m, Gremio)

OUT:

Bournemouth completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Fraser Forster (free, unassigned)

OUT: Julian Araujo (loan, Celtic)

Brentford completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: Iwan Morgan (loan, Shrewsbury)

Brighton completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Andrew Moran (loan return, LAFC), Yoon Do-young (loan return, Excelsior), Pascal Gross (£1.2m, Borussia Dortmund)

OUT: Yoon Do-young (loan, Dordecht)

Burnley completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: Lewis Forshaw (loan, Worksop)

Chelsea completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT:

Crystal Palace completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Brennan Johnson (£34.8m, Spurs), Hindolo Mustapha (loan return, Nurnberg)

OUT:

Everton completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Harrison Armstrong (loan return, Preston)

OUT:

Fulham completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT:

Leeds United completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Charlie Crew (loan return, Doncaster)

OUT:

Liverpool completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: James Norris (undisclosed, Shelbourne)

Manchester City completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Claudio Echeverri (loan return, Bayer Leverkusen)

OUT:

Manchester United completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Toby Collyer (loan return, West Brom), Sonny Aljofree (loan return, Notts County)

OUT:

Newcastle United completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: Antonito Cordero (loan, Cadiz)

Nottingham Forest completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Cuiabano (loan return, Botafogo)

OUT:

Sunderland completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Zak Johnson (loan return, York)

OUT:

Tottenham Hotspur completed transfers in January 2026

IN: Jamie Donley (loan return, Stoke)

OUT: Kota Takai (loan, Borussia Monchengladbach), Brennan Johnson (£34.8m, Crystal Palace)

West Ham completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT: Niclas Fullkrug (loan, AC Milan)

Wolves completed transfers in January 2026

IN:

OUT:

READ NEXT: Virgil van Dijk has most touches, passes, aerial duels won, clearances in 25/26 Premier League

The sale of ‘popular’ Tottenham figure Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace has reportedly ‘not gone down well’ within the Spurs squad.

Spurs have kicked off the January transfer window by letting Johnson go. The man who won them the Europa League saw an agreement for his transfer made in recent days.

He was then given the final say over the transfer, and has accepted that the move to Palace is best for him after his club decided he was surplus to requirements.

Indeed, multiple outlets have reported the move is now complete, and a photo has surfaced of Johnson wearing a Palace shirt with his name and the No.11 on the back.

Football.London Tottenham insider Alasdair Gold reports that Johnson was told on New Year’s Day, by both Thomas Frank and Fabio Paratici, that they’ll be going in a different direction and he was therefore surplus to requirements.

Gold states the decision to sell Johnson – a ‘popular’ figure within the dressing room – has ‘not gone down particularly well’ with the squad, particularly given his goalscoring abilities at a time when finding the net has been tough.

Gold points out that Mohammed Kudus has taken over from Johnson on the right-wing this season, and has fewer goals, despite having played more often.

The squad unrest may only further add pressure to manager Frank, on whom there is already pressure, with the players perhaps being disillusioned with the decision.

Indeed, squad harmony is important, but with that said, there is a sense that the players should simply get on with it, as in sports sometimes you’re going to have to do things you don’t want to and still have to be professional.

But with pressure already on Frank, the squad turning against him would surely be the last straw.

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It was recently reported that Spurs are worried the former Brentford boss is maybe ‘not the right long-term fit’ for the club.

As a result, they are said to be making plans to bring back popular former boss Mauricio Pochettino, who is currently in charge of the USA.

Frank has struggled to get fans on side with side’s performances this season, while Pochettino was one of the best received managers the club has had given the success, or nearly-success, he had with them.

Never has the disconnect between a manager and fanbase been more transparent than at Brentford v Tottenham last night.

Tottenham left with precisely what they intended to – a clean sheet and a precious point in their noble quest for an 11th-placed finish. But that is not at all what the fans want or expect or consider an acceptable target.

A point at Brentford is not a bad result for anyone this season. We’re halfway through the season and the only visiting team to win there this season is Man City, and that was a tense and tight 1-0 win.

The result is fine. The manner of it is not so much. Most Spurs fans would have settled for a point last night; but they will not settle for playing only for that point and showing neither the Dare nor the Do to strive for anything more.

That is what Thomas Frank still doesn’t grasp, and why last night’s draw might actually be his most damaging result yet. Because it highlights the gulf that exists between him and fans who spent the entire game singing for lost heroes from Dele to Christian Eriksen and Mousa Dembele. Even Eric Dier’s song got an airing as, of course, did Brennan Johnson’s. Along with more than one refrain of Boring, Boring Tottenham.

There is clear and undeniable logic behind the sale of Brennan Johnson. He has a particular set of skills that made him the perfect Angeballer, but such limitations that he is not only poorly suited to Frankball but most likely any successor too. It’s good money for a player who will only be worth less after another six months on the bench.

But the reports that Johnson was told by Thomas Frank and Fabio Paratici that he doesn’t feature in Tottenham’s future plans immediately begs further questions.

First and more churlishly: there are plans? But more importantly, how confident is anyone right now that Frank and Paratici are part of Tottenham’s long-term future plans? The former has just shown yet again just how poor a fit he is for the club he now calls home after that drab effort at the one he used to.

And the last we heard, Paratici was in deep and complex talks with Fiorentina that definitely weren’t all about Manor Solomon.

It is all a bit of a mess, and we cannot shake the idea that the performance at Brentford is Frank’s most damaging and perilous moment yet. Defeats are one thing, but at least after defeats, everyone is on the same page in acknowledging that losing games is not a good thing.

The travelling fans at Brentford were clear and unanimous in their displeasure – and this is the away fans Thomas Frank has previously praised for their deep ball knowledge and high tolerance for unwatchable sh*te, in contrast to those mean home ones who make it impossible for his players to beat even Wolves at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

But in Frank’s mind, the trip to Brentford represented a job well done.

It also represented the first time since the disastrous trip to Arsenal in November that he had paired Rodrigo Bentancur and Joao Palhinha in midfield, adding a further layer of nonsense atop that cement-mixer of a midfield by asking a third defensive midfielder in Archie Gray to play as a kind of false 10.

All three are good players. All three are perfectly valid and useful members of Spurs’ squad. They absolutely do not and cannot together constitute a viable midfield three.

But Spurs simply don’t have the numbers and their manager lacks the inclination to gamble. The lack of compelling alternatives is a significant reminder that Frank is not and never could be the only or even biggest problem with Spurs right now. But he is still a problem, and one more easily solved than other deeper issues.

He is getting less out of an admittedly depleted squad at this stage of 2025/26 than the now utterly exposed Ange Postecoglou was doing at this time last season when he had almost no defenders.

We keep hearing Frank remind everyone that Spurs finished 17th last season, but he doesn’t seem to understand – or is at least pretending not to understand – that this represented an unacceptable disaster so unthinkable that not even the club’s biggest success in 40 years could mask it.

It is not a baseline from which to work; it is a freak one-off occurrence never to be repeated.

Yet he has attempted repeatedly to position his task this season as clearing that specific bar, one so low it is in the Upside Down.

His team and tactics at Brentford showed it. Again. We already know that Joao Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur specifically are an either/or proposition. That you can and must do literally anything else other than pair them together given the disastrous knock-on effect it has on the football – or what passes for it – produced by the rest of the team.

Yet with Lucas Bergvall, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Pape Sarr and Xavi Simons all still unavailable for assorted reasons this weekend, we fully expect to see Bentinha once again in dreary harness in Spurs’ midfield against Sunderland.

Except this time it’s at home. And it won’t just be 1700 travelling Spurs fans voicing their displeasure at the sheer indignity of it all.

He talks about getting the fans back onside, about how success will do that. But there is nothing to indicate that success is coming. There is nothing within what Frank is showing us now that even hints at the possibility of what a successful version of this might look like. We’re not even sure he really has a handle on what success even means. We’re not particularly sure Spurs fans do either, for that matter, now the trophy drought is in the bin.

But Spurs fans do at least know what they like. And Frank ain’t it.

There are plenty of Spurs fans who really will tolerate unsuccessful football that’s entertaining. There are more still who might tolerate tepid football that’s successful. But they won’t accept boring, unsuccessful football for very long at all. And right now Frank shows no appetite to change the former and no plan to change the latter and is losing even the hardcore away support. So where does that leave us?

Frank has made it to 2026 still in situ. How far he lasts into the year remains to be seen.

According to reports, Tottenham Hotspur have an ‘extraordinary plan’ to ‘bring back’ Mauricio Pochettino to replace current boss Thomas Frank.

Frank was appointed in the summer to replace former head coach Ange Postecoglou, who parted company with the Premier League outfit after helping them win the Europa League.

Tottenham‘s dire Premier League form made Postecoglou’s position untenable, with Frank brought in as a safe pair of hands to steady the ship.

Under Frank, Spurs have become tougher to beat and more defensively resolute, but they are on the front foot much less and he has been criticised for his negative approach to matches.

Results and performances have also declined as Spurs have only won two of their previous ten Premier League matches since the start of November.

READ: Frank irks Spurs supporters with Arsenal repeat as dull draw vs Brentford strains relationship further

This poor form has seen Spurs fall into the bottom half of the Premier League table, while supporters turned on Frank on his players during the dull 0-0 draw against Brentford on New Year’s Day.

This leaves Frank as one of the favourites to be the next Premier League manager sacked, with it appearing that club chiefs are not sold on the head coach.

One of Frank’s main issues is that his tactical approach is a far cry from the ethos demanded by Spurs supporters, with an insider on X claiming owners ENIC are ‘worried’ that he ‘might not be the right long-term fit for the club’.

With that, it is also claimed that they are currently ‘making extraordinary plans to bring club legend Pochettino back in the summer’.

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Pochettino is regarded as one of Tottenham’s greatest ever managers and he has been sporadically linked with a potential return to the club in recent years.

The 53-year-old, who has also had spells at Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, currently manages the United States national team and is preparing for next summer’s World Cup, but his contract is due to expire at the end of the tournament.

On Thursday night, Frank responded to his side being booed by supporters after drawing at Brentford.

He said: “They were not too satisfied and it’s fair when we don’t hit that top performance overall, but I think it’s double-sided because we need to acknowledge the defensive side of the game, which we’ve done excellent today against a team that scored three against Liverpool and Man United.

“If you as a team are not strong defensively it’s just impossible to compete over a long season. Impossible if you want to end in the nice position you would like to end in.

“But of course the offensive part needs to be better. There’s no two ways about that. I’m very aware that we are not where I want us to be. Very aware.

“It’s not that we don’t want to play offensive or attacking football. We work very, very hard on that, but while you work hard on that you can’t, if you struggle scoring goals or creating enough chances, you can’t open up too much because then you need to score too many goals. It’s a fine balance.”

Following an initial bounce, it has gone badly pear-shaped for Thomas Frank at Spurs quickly.

Appointed as the polar opposite of Ange Postecoglou to build firmer foundations for Spurs to build upon, Frank helped his side make a strong start to the 2025/26 campaign with their newfound defensive solidity.

However, this has papered over the cracks at Tottenham, with their underlying issues becoming increasingly visible as the season has developed.

Spurs, like most Premier League sides this season, have been marred by inconsistency, though there have certainly been more lows than highs for Frank and his side.

The north London outfit occupied a false position in the opening weeks of the campaign, with their run of two wins in ten Premier League games since the start of November seeing them freefall into the bottom half of the table.

A contributing factor to Tottenham’s sudden decline has been their toothless attack as they sorely lack a clinical edge in forward positions, but they have also not been helped by Frank’s mindset.

Supporters have rightly criticised Frank for taking Spurs too far away from their deep-rooted footballing philosophy, which is arguably something between the approach adopted by their current head coach and Postecoglou.

This came to a head in November’s north London derby at the Emirates, with Frank rolling out the red carpet for Arsenal to have their way with Spurs, who were made to show far too much respect to their rivals as their mission for a smash-and-grab point failed miserably.

READ: Spurs taking a ‘loss’ on Brennan Johnson could prove to be a significant win

In that game, Frank opted for a solid but unthreatening midfield pairing of Joao Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur, with these two players’ starts against Brentford marking the first time they have been selected in the first XI together since Arsenal.

Once again, Frank opted for a safety-first approach by drafting in Palhinha to replace the injured Lucas Bergvall, setting the tone for another uninspiring performance from Spurs.

Brentford were not great either, but they certainly had the better of the action against Spurs, who had Guglielmo Vicario booked for time-wasting with 20 minutes remaining.

Given Tottenham’s poor form, you can understand why Frank opted to lean so deeply into his defensive mindset against Brentford, with his side set up to grind out results, as described by Chris Sutton, in a “very stuffy and scrappy” manner to ease pressure on himself and his players.

Still, Frank is also looking to sell himself to Spurs supporters as a viable long-term solution that fits their image of the football club, and in that sense, he is failing miserably.

While shaking off the temptation to have a New Year’s Day snooze from their expensive seats, Spurs supporters were heard singing the names of Dele, Moussa Dembele, Eric Dier and Christian Eriksen, which is a clear rejection of Frank reverting to the failed approach adopted vs Arsenal as they desperately strive for any semblance of entertainment from their boring side.

Frank gave a half-hearted offer of an olive branch to Spurs supporters by replacing Palhinha with Mathys Tel in a positive change with ten minutes to go, but this was too late, and it did not alter the trajectory of a game that was always bound to finish 0-0.

Pundits have labelled it “daft” to already be talking of Frank losing his job at Spurs, but these individuals are simply missing the underlying point of Frank putting himself on a downward spiral to his eventual sacking as a manager who is just as unsuited to the club as Postecoglou.