Thomas Frank promises solutions after Tottenham stutter in Bodo/Glimt draw
Thomas Frank was once again proud of the character his Tottenham side showed in coming from behind to earn a draw with Bodo/Glimt.
Spurs were second best for much of the night in Norway and fell 2-0 down in the second half, but Micky van de Ven pulled one back and a late own goal then saw them snatch a point.
It means Spurs have four points from their opening two Champions League matches, leaving them with a strong platform to qualify for the knockout stages.
“The positive is I think the mentality and the character of the players was very good,” Frank said.
“Stayed in the game. Kept fighting and that gave us a very good point away from home. When you’re 2-0 down in a Champions League game, and especially against a Bodo team that are very good here, then you need to be happy with that.
“I’m happy that we again got back into the game, I think that’s very positive. I think until 2-0 it’s fair to say, and especially in the first half, Bodo was better than us.”
This was the third time in four matches that Spurs had to come from behind to avoid a defeat.
They were 2-0 down against Brighton before responding to pick up a draw, and Joao Palhinha’s stoppage-time equaliser secured a point against Wolves on Saturday.
While Frank will be concerned that his side are requiring these comebacks, and that they were so poor for the majority of the match against Bodo/Glimt, the resilience has impressed him.
“It’s extremely important that we got back from 2-0 down against Brighton, we got back against Wolves and we got back again today,” Frank said.
“I think that’s hugely important that we show that mentality, and keep running, keep fighting hard. You need to do that in football, no matter if you’re on top of the game. Sometimes a team can score out of nothing.
Spurs were terrible in possession in the first half and their attackers offered very little, with Richarlison managing just four touches in the opening 45 minutes.
Struggling to create chances from open play has been a theme in recent weeks but Frank again insisted the solutions will come.
“I think in the first half there was definitely something in that we could have kept the ball a bit better,” Frank admitted.
“I don’t think that was only on Richarlison, I think it was a little bit of the structure of the team where we could have kept the ball better in situations. But that I’m not in doubt will improve.”
