Football London

Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank had plenty of injury updates at his press conference in Norway ahead of the Champions League game at Bodo/Glimt.

Spurs are back in the Norwegian town by the sea following the Europa League semi-final second leg back in May and will again play on the artificial turf of the Aspmyra Stadion on Tuesday night for the league phase encounter. Frank had mixed updates on the injuries to strikers Dominic Solanke and Randal Kolo Muani as well as news on skipper Cristian Romero after the last-gasp draw against Wolves at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Our Tottenham correspondent Alasdair Gold was among those putting the questions to Frank in Bodo. Here's the full transcript from the press conference at the Aspmyra Stadion.

Can I check on the team news please? How is Dominic Solanke, Randal Kolo Muani and also Cristian Romero didn't seem to be training today?

Dom, you know, got that ankle issue that's been bothering him for a little while. So now we decided to make a minor surgery. It's a small procedure. So that will mean he's not ready for today, of course. And of course, Leeds he's out as well. We will have more news about time frame after the international break. But I don't expect it to be long.

Kolo Muani, I think now we're finally on top of his dead leg. So there's also progress there. So that's good. And Cuti [not travelling] was just precaution.

I can't imagine you generally look back at matches from previous seasons, but it wasn't really that long ago that Tottenham won here in a big match, have you looked at it and what can you take from it?

Yeah, I've looked at that game, of course. But I've also looked at a lot of other games of Bodo. I think they're a fantastic team. I think their club is fantastic. I think their story is unique in many ways. I'm pretty sure that the whole of Europe knows about Bodo, because I think it's a little bit of a fairytale. I like, of course, that Scandinavian link between Denmark and Norway.

So of course I follow them a little bit, maybe a tiny bit closer, and the background I'm coming from, to see how they have built that club through years of some core group of people, aligning strategy, structure, hard work over years.

And then just build a smaller club suddenly to be the absolute force in Norway and now competing in the Europe over many seasons. That's extremely impressive, I think. Kjetil Knutsen and his staff is remarkable, what they have done. Their style of play is quite unique in many ways. Extremely well-coached team. Big praise, I admire them a lot.

What can you take from that particular performance?

That's one performance. That's the game. How many months is that? Four months ago. With all due respect, I was not the coach. Some group of players, they have some group of players. This is a new game. This is a new situation. We go into it with huge respect. For Bodo, it's going to be very difficult [for us]. Their home record here in European games, all that's unique, with I think 31 wins out of 39, something like that. They apparently have scored in more or less every home game in 46 games in a row. We know what we are facing. Of course, we also have to trust in ourselves.

You chose not to train here tonight, you talk about their home advantage so why do you choose not to train here?

Because we have one training session. If we have training here and we want to do a little bit of tactical, with all due respect I think it would be a little bit more obvious what we would do. That's the thing we like to keep for ourselves. Then, yes, you can say if we train here for how long we are allowed, 45 minutes, Is that going to make a difference? I know the surface is different. If you really want to get used to it, I think you need to train here day in, day out as Bodo do. We are ready for that challenge. But for me, mainly, mainly, mainly, it was the tactical reason.

Stale Solbakken told us you're the nicest man in the world but you also had a few run-ins, what was your relationship like with hi?

Stale, when we are in Copenhagen, you can have a few infights in that area. But Stale is a man and a football coach I admire a lot. What he built in Copenhagen was also incredible over many, many, many years. Now he is here representing his country. They have started very well, so I am very happy on his behalf in many ways. A good colleague and good friend in the football environment.

Bodo have a lot of Norwegian players, what do you make of it?

A little bit on that, as you say more or less Norwegian players, and a few Danish players as well, of course. Just to add a spark, no, jokes aside. That makes it even more impressive, I think, that you do it with more or less Norwegian players built from this country. It is remarkable.

What is the best team in Scandinavia? Is it Copenhagen or Bodo?

You put me on the spot there. I think, let me put it this way, I would like to see a match between the two teams. There was a lot of talk about Malmö and Copenhagen when they played each other in the quarter, not the play-off, the one before. I think that would be very interesting between the two styles. I think they are very close to each other, I must admit. What was the first question? I forgot it because you put me on the spot.

What is Bodo's biggest weakness and how do you plan to exploit it?

I think I would rather like to say about their biggest strength is their structure in the way they play. They are so well coached, so their patterns are so clear, which I think is a huge strength. So, I'm very aware that we are... Yes, we come from the Premier League and so on but we also see last year that we had to defend very well. No doubt about that. They are so good and clear in how they want to do things. And also they play very, very quick on this pitch.

We've seen a lot of improvements already in the defence of this team since you arrived. I just wonder what you think of the creativity in the last few weeks and how you see where improvements can be made in that department?

I think in terms of the creativity or maybe creating more chances, dominating a bit more, I think the Brighton game was a very good game. I think the first half against Wolves was good, we didn't score, but I think all the right signs were there, so I think it's a step forward.

As I said before, I think it's natural. Last year, most of the game, it was Kulusevski, Maddison, Sonny and Dom who played more or less the front four.

Now we have more or less a new front four and they are doing very well. One of them sitting next to me is doing very well, having a very good start to the season. I think they're gelling more and more together and we try to give them the best patterns and principles.

Do you feel like it's been a bit of a wasted month almost with Dom because of trying to get him back into training?

I think you can look from two ways. That's the easy answer, but it's not that easy. If we knew we could have done the surgery a month ago, we probably would have done it. So for me, I'm always like I imagine, ‘oh, it is what it is, we deal from now’.

No doubt that the way we dealt with this was because we thought that was the right way because I think in general, no one wants a surgery, no matter how small it is.

The goalkeeper, Nikita Haikin, said earlier today that it was unusual to see a team like Spurs going for long throws and set-pieces everywhere on the pitch? What do you make of that?

Who said that, sorry?

The goalkeeper, Nikita.

OK. Erm, I personally think that set-pieces are an extremely important part of football. Isn't there a stat that 33 per cent or something like that that all goals are scored from set-pieces?

So I think it's clever to utilise a third of your opportunities to try to score a goal. I'm happy, that's a fine comment. If you think that's a strength of ours, I'm happy with that.

How big a difference does the pitch make? I know everybody always talks about it, but would you have to change tactical approach according to the pitch?

No, not really a tactical approach. Of course we are aware. It's the same in Denmark, when I was coach for Brøndby, we were facing Nordsjaelland at that time.

It was also a different surface. It's the same today. It's fine. They're good here, they're very good at home. For me, I think there's a lot of talk about the pitch. I rather want to praise the team, the Bodo team, and their coach, what they do.

Because they do it quite consistently, home and away, the way they play. So I'm pretty sure they get the answer or the question sometimes, can they play on grass when they go away from home? Of course they can. So it's a feature pitch. Players like Lucas have played on them their whole life. Lots of our players have played there.

I know we need to speak about it, but I think, I'm pretty sure all the journalists, Kjetil, myself, all the players just want to talk about football.

Just following up on Romero. What was the issue?

Just precaution.

Is it muscle?

No, just precaution.

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank has confirmed that Dominic Solanke has undergone minor surgery on the ankle injury that has plagued him since pre-season. The England international has not featured for Spurs since before the September international break, despite returning to training at Hotspur Way.

In the updates following his absence from the squad to face his former club Bournemouth a number of weeks ago, Frank had revealed he was getting closer to a return. However, he recently revealed that Solanke was still dealing with some pain in the area.

"His ankle injury has been a little tricky - it's nothing big," he revealed before the clash against Wolves. "We're relatively positive he will be back quickly. It's not perfect, but we're going forward in the right direction. He wasn't [training] on the grass today, but he has been during the week.'

Following that mixed update, it is perhaps no surprise the manager has confirmed that Solanke has been forced to undergo a 'minor' procedure.

"Dom we know got that ankle issue that's been bothering him for a little while. Decided to have minor surgery. Small procedure. More news about time frame after the international break," he admitted in a press conference on Monday.

Alongside his absence from the final training session before the Champions League clash against Bodo/Glimt, Randal Kolo Muani and Cristian Romero were also absent.

Frank has however, confirmed that both are on the mend, but ruled out for the upcoming game. He said: "Kolo Muani, I think finally on top of his dead leg. Cuti was just precaution [missing training]."

James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski are currently sidelined with long-term issues, but the hope will be that Solanke does not miss an extended period.

There has been some positive news though, with Radu Dragusin back training after missed the majority of this year courtesy of an ACL injury. Ben Davies, Kota Takai and Yves Bissouma are also dealing with minor issues after missing the Carabao Cup clash against Doncaster Rovers last week and the draw at home to Wolves.

Pape Sarr missed the fourth round tie with a small issue but returned to action off the bench against Wolves and grabbed the assist for Joao Palhinha's last-gasp equaliser.

Pedro Porro was omitted from the starting XI for that clash as he was given a rest and is therefore expected to feature from the off in Norway on Tuesday evening.

Yeah, I've looked at that game [in May], of course. But I've also looked at a lot of other games of Bodo. I think they're a fantastic team. I think their club is fantastic. I think their story is unique in many ways. I'm pretty sure that the whole of Europe knows about Bodo, because I think it's a little bit of a fairytale. I like, of course, that Scandinavian link between Denmark and Norway.

So of course I follow them a little bit, maybe a tiny bit closer, and the background I'm coming from, to see how they have built that club through years of some core group of people, aligning strategy, structure, hard work over years.

And then just build a smaller club suddenly to be the absolute force in Norway and now competing in the Europe over many seasons. That's extremely impressive, I think. Kjetil Knutsen and his staff is remarkable, what they have done. Their style of play is quite unique in many ways. Extremely well-coached team. Big praise, I admire them a lot.

Because we have one training session. If we have training here and we want to do a little bit of tactical, with all due respect I think it would be a little bit more obvious what we would do. That's the thing we like to keep for ourselves. Then, yes, you can say if we train here for how long we are allowed, 45 minutes, Is that going to make a difference? I know the surface is different. If you really want to get used to it, I think you need to train here day in, day out as Bodo do. We are ready for that challenge. But for me, mainly, mainly, mainly, it was the tactical reason.

Dom, you know, got that ankle issue that's been bothering him for a little while. So now we decided to make a minor surgery. It's a small procedure. So that will mean he's not ready for today, of course. And of course, Leeds he's out as well. We will have more news about time frame after the international break. But I don't expect it to be long.

Kolo Muani, I think now we're finally on top of his dead leg. So there's also progress there. So that's good. And Cuti [not travelling] was just precaution.

Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have slashed the price of their 2025/26 shirts and kits by 20%. The deal comes from Fanatics, which is offering fans big savings on Arsenal and Spurs home, away and third shirts with the coupon code ‘score’.

It comes as both clubs gear up for the second game of their Champions League campaign, with Spurs facing Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt on Tuesday (September 30). The Gunners will then follow up their dramatic 2-1 win against Newcastle on Wednesday (October 1) when they host Olympiacos.

Standout items in the Fanatics sale include the Arsenal Home Shirt (£63.75) and the Tottenham Hotspur Home Shirt (£63.74). There’s also the Arsenal Away Authentic Shirt (£90) and Tottenham Hotspur Third Shirt (£63.74).

Arsenal and adidas drop 'timeless' Samba trainers ahead of Premier League season

Tottenham injury issues continue as two key players miss training before Bodo/Glimt

Fanatics also offers countless shirts with player printing, including new signings such as the Arsenal Away Authentic Shirt with Eze 10 printing (£90) and Arsenal Home Shirt with Gyökeres 14 printing (£75). While no pre-printed Spurs shirts are included in the sale, fans can personalise their purchases during checkout.

There are also options for female or younger fans too, such as the Arsenal Womens Third Shirt (£63.75) and Arsenal Kids Home Shirt (£45). Spurs fans can bag discounts on the Tottenham Hotspur Womens Home Shirt (£63.74) and Tottenham Hotspur Kids Away Shirt (£48.74).

All kits are also available at full price direct from the clubs, at the Arsenal Shop and Spurs Shop. Earlier this month, Arsenal unveiled a new clothing range paying tribute to its old home with the Last Days of Highbury collection.

Designed as an homage to the club’s past, it includes popular items like the Arsenal Classics Farewell Track Top (£75), Arsenal Classics Records Varsity Jacket (£155) and Arsenal Classics Highbury Lifestyle Shirt (£65). Hundreds of Arsenal supporters took to Instagram following the latest merch drop, with one saying: “Doesn’t get much better than this.”

Another added they would like to "buy every piece." However, this less impressed fan said: “This club stresses me. We have no silverware but we’ll keep buying merch.” While this Gunner simply said: “Flyest club in England.”

Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Luka Vuskovic claims he is not thinking about his long-term future after making a lightning start on loan at Hamburger SV in the Bundesliga. The Croatia international has already found the target once and he also guided his side to a clean sheet on Sunday during a goalless draw away to Union Berlin.

The match was of particular significance because man of the match Vuskovic won an incredible 18 duels in 90 minutes. He is the first player inside Europe's top-five domestic leagues to achieve that in the past five seasons.

Speaking after the game, Vuskovic was asked about whether he could see himself staying with Hamburg beyond the end of his loan, to which he replied: “I just arrived, so that’s not an issue right now. Let’s see what happens next summer.”

Spurs made it abundantly clear during discussions with various clubs over a loan for Vuskovic that they would not be willing to include a permanent transfer option in any deal.

Thomas Frank is an admirer of the player but collectively, Tottenham felt he deserved regular minutes this season and that was not on offer in N17 where competition for places remains fierce.

Swiss midfielder Miro Muheim was full of praise for his teenage team-mate following Sunday's point in Berlin, stating: “He’s a monster, for sure. I don’t think he lost a single header. He’s doing a great job. The boy is a superb footballer and is helping us tremendously."

HSV goalkeeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes added: “When you see Luka, how he always went for headers as a flexible player. That was something you need in games like this. This aerial dominance he has, this presence. It’s simply something that’s good for us."

Last week, Vuskovic raised concerns he suffered a broken finger when smashing his hand against the post in frustration. However, he has now clarified that he avoided injury after picking up the problem in the recent victory over Heidenheim.

He told Bild: “They’re a bit swollen, but they’re fine. Nothing’s broken. I don’t usually react quite so emotionally. But I identify so strongly with this club, and after that missed chance, the post was the one to take the fall. I felt the pain immediately. But when I scored shortly after, I forgot about it.”

Bodo/Glimt chief Havard Sakariassen has warned Tottenham his side have drastically improved since the teams last met four months ago.

Spurs produced two accomplished performances in May under old boss Ange Postecoglou to break the hearts of the Norwegian minnows and progress into the Europa League final. Bodo had already made history with their run to the last four of Europe’s second-tier competition, with memorable knockout wins over Olympiacos and Lazio, but Tottenham followed up a 3-1 home win with a mature 2-0 victory in the second leg in the Arctic Circle.

Long-term sporting director Sakariassen admitted Kjetil Knutsen’s team have since realised areas where they were short ahead of the club’s maiden home fixture in the Champions League against Tottenham on Tuesday.

Sakariassen told the PA news agency: “Tottenham actually played a really good game here at Aspmyra against us. Really well organised, loyal to the plan and of course they have really world-class players. If they perform that well in their task, it is always going to be tough for us.

“For us it was a lot of learning. The reflection for us after the game is was there enough level on the physical side? So, actually that brought something to the table for us that we are grateful to have the knowledge about.

“It means we have since then changed and worked in a slightly better and more reflective way to see if we can realise the potential in the physical side of our players.

“I think that made us stronger and hopefully we will see that when we see them again that we actually moved up a step. That will be interesting.”

Sakariassen was diplomatic when asked about Spurs’ decision to sack Postecoglou after he secured the club a first trophy in 17 years, which is in sharp contrast to Bodo’s philosophy with Knutsen in place since 2018. Thomas Frank will be in the away dugout for Tottenham this time and another sell-out is expected at Bodo’s 8,270-seater Aspmyra Stadion.

“It is Tottenham’s decision how they choose to run the club. It’s a tough business, that’s for sure and I have a lot of respect, we all have respect for the regime that was there when we met them last time. I think they have a great manager now too,” Sakariassen said.

“In our surroundings there is a lot of buzz about this. Of course there is a buzz around us in the city and in Norway about the Champions League.

“We sold a package here for the whole Champions League (campaign) and it’s impossible to get them. Probably we could sell out 20 or 30,000 tickets and we have a stadium for 8,008 so the demand is crazy.

“For me personally and I think I can speak for everyone here, we just have positive feelings about Tottenham, but of course we hope to be more competitive with them when we meet.”

Tottenham Hotspur are facing a potential fixture congestion following the announcement of their Carabao Cup fourth-round tie. Spurs secured their spot in the last 16 after triumphing over Doncaster Rovers in the previous round last week.

Thomas Frank, the new Tottenham boss, has made a commendable start, with the club sitting fourth in the Premier League table after six games. However, a 1-1 draw against Wolves at home on Saturday night meant they missed an opportunity to narrow the gap with reigning champions and leaders Liverpool.

Despite the packed schedule, Tottenham remain contenders in all four competitions this season, harbouring hopes of lifting another major trophy. Yet, this success brings with it a daunting fixture list for Frank and his team.

Monday morning brought the news that Tottenham's Carabao Cup fourth-round clash with Newcastle United is scheduled for Wednesday, October 29 at St James' Park.

This match comes sandwiched between Premier League encounters with Everton (October 26) and Chelsea (November 1), meaning Spurs will face three matches within a week, reports the Mirror.

Following this, Tottenham have a Champions League showdown with FC Copenhagen on November 4, before welcoming Manchester United to their home ground in the Premier League on November 8. This sequence of fixtures means that Spurs will now contend with five matches over a span of 14 days leading up to the November international break.

The stalemate against Wolves leaves Tottenham trailing table-toppers Liverpool by four points in the Premier League standings. Frank acknowledged there had been a chance to take advantage of Liverpool's shock loss to Crystal Palace, before analysing his side's display.

"Yeah, I think if you look before the game, you would say that there was a good chance for us to win," said Frank on Saturday night. "But I think it's also, that's why I also said it before the game, we haven't beaten Wolves the last five times, no, six times in a row.

"And also a team that have lost the first five, there's a time where they will get something. And also I said before the game, they had played very, very even games.

"So it's never easy. That said, I hoped and believed if we hit a top performance, we would win. We didn't hit a top performance.

"I think we hit an average performance. But you do that sometimes. So yeah, we got a point on a day when not everything worked and then we move forward."

Carabao Cup fourth round fixture dates:

Tuesday, October 28

Grimsby Town vs Brentford - 7:45pm - Sky Sports +

Wycombe Wanderers vs Fulham - 7:45pm - Sky Sports +

Wrexham vs Cardiff - 8pm - Sky Sports/ITV

Wednesday, October 29

Tottenham Hotspur have concerns over the fitness of two forwards ahead of their UEFA Champions League clash with Bodo/Glimt.

The squad trained on Monday on the eve of the match in Norway, but neither Dominic Solanke nor Randal Kolo Muani were involved in the session. Solanke last featured for Spurs in August’s win over Manchester City. The striker appeared close to a return after resuming training last week, but he was not seen with the main group at Hotspur Way.

Speaking about Solanke’s setback, new Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank admitted the injury has been tricky to manage. “I think sometimes, let’s say you have got a calf sprain or hamstring or even ACL, it is very simple, very easy to deal with,” he said of the ankle problem.

“Sometimes it is just a little bit more tricky. So this is a little bit more tricky without being a problem. I expect Dom back as soon as possible.”

Frustration over Solanke’s continued absence has been compounded by the loss of Kolo Muani, who joined the club on loan from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer. Frank confirmed that the France international has a “minor” injury — described as a dead leg — which was enough to keep him out of Monday’s session.

Kolo Muani has made just one appearance for Spurs so far, coming off the bench for the final 13 minutes of the 1-0 win over Villarreal in the opening round of the Champions League group stage.

It means Richarlison is expected to continue leading the line for Spurs, who are already without attacking midfielders Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison due to long-term injuries.

Frank was at least boosted by the return to training of veteran defender Ben Davies, while Kota Takai also took part after recovering from a plantar fascia issue. Yves Bissouma was involved too following a recent knee problem.

Joao Palhinha has told his Tottenham teammates they must be "much more calm" when going behind in games.

The 30-year-old scored a last-gasp equaliser for Spurs against Wolves on Saturday, although Vitor Pereira's side dominated large periods of the game. The Lilywhites could have gone second and two points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool with a sixth win in nine matches under new boss Thomas Frank, but were instead indebted to Palhinha’s curled finish in the fourth minute of stoppage time to rescue a 1-1 draw.

Bayern Munich loanee Palhinha was impressed with Tottenham’s first-half display – where Mohammed Kudus had a close-range header tipped onto the crossbar by Sam Johnstone and another effort ruled out for offside. Lucas Bergvall also fired a 12-yard volley over.

Bottom-of-the-table Wolves reacted at half-time with Pereira going back to his trusted 3-4-2-1 formation and they went ahead in the 54th minute when Santiago Bueno tapped in after Guglielmo Vicario had denied Ladislav Krejci from a corner. Frank made multiple substitutions and tactical tweaks after the deadlock had been broken, but Tottenham struggled to fashion clear-cut opportunities until Pape Sarr teed up Palhinha to find the bottom corner from 18 yards for his third goal of the season to earn a point.

“I think it’s mandatory to win these games. I think we give everything and we fight until the last moment – everyone on the pitch. We try to score, try to get the draw but it is a sad draw in my opinion and we wish much more from this game,” Palhinha reflected.

“I think we did a really good first half and when we suffer the goal, we start to drop a lot in my opinion. We didn’t have the patience in the right moments when we need to find the good way to score and we need to be much more calm in these moments because it will be key for us.

“We will not start winning all the games, we know even for the future, but when we start to lose 1-0 the game, we need to be much more calm on the ball and especially try to create more chances.

“Yeah it’s a result that for me feels like a loss. I said before that these are the games that are mandatory to win, especially in our home, but now we need to focus on the Champions League.”

Dr Tottenham saw Wolves on Saturday, only he whipped away most of their medicine at the last moment.

Death, taxes and Tottenham generously ending a visiting team's winless streak are among the only certainties in life. If you are a manager in the Spurs dugout, regardless of whether it's the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Wembley or White Hart Lane, there will have been an instance or two or three or more when your Lilywhites side lost a match that on paper should never have happened against a team in dire straits.

Spurs are a footballing paradox. In European competition, they have not lost in 21 matches at home, winning 17 of those. Yet in the Premier League, Tottenham have triumphed in just three of their past 17 matches in their own backyard.

That's an abysmal record at a huge 62,850-seater stadium that was built to be a fortress, not a place filled with groans, moans and boos.

On Saturday night, 60,537 fans filed into the huge arena on Tottenham High Road and they got two different halves of football for their money.

The first period at least brought some creativity and chances with Mohammed Kudus seeing an early header touched on to the crossbar with Sam Johnstone. It was the seventh time the Ghana international has hit the woodwork since the start of last season, more than any other player in the Premier League.

Lucas Bergvall fluffed a good chance in the box after a great break by Destiny Udogie. Then the Swede combined with Kudus with a back flick for the winger to curl a shot home but from an offside position.

Bergvall was again involved with an acrobatic effort over the crossbar before Kudus forced Johnstone into a flying save. With the last kick of the first half former Spurs full-back Matt Doherty sent a volley against the top of the crossbar that should have been a warning that was heeded.

Of course it wasn't. Nine minutes after the break the visitors caught Spurs with a sucker punch. Guglielmo Vicario reacted well to save a Ladislav Krejci header from a corner but could only push it against Joao Palhinha and the ball bounced back to Santiago Bueno to poke home.

The remainder of the second half until the 94th minute was awful from Tottenham. They wasted possession constantly even though Thomas Frank was yelling at them at various points from the side of the pitch to be patient and not rush their passes.

They did not listen to the Spurs head coach but when the crowd shouted 'shoot' in unison they heard that. Cue a string of dreadful efforts from distance that were of more danger to those at the top of the south stand than Johnstone in the Wolves goal.

Just as Frank was at his most frustrated so two of his five changes suddenly worked. His other substitutions hadn't. Brennan Johnson and Pedro Porro offered little to nothing extra on the right flank than those they replaced and on the other side Wilson Odobert was as much use as a dunked Rich Tea biscuit.

Yet Mathys Tel and Pape Matar Sarr were there for Frank's SOS - save our substitutions. Tel deftly flicked the ball past a defender on the left in added time and drove inside before curling a low cross that Sarr touched back into the path of Palhinha.

The Portuguese didn't miss a beat in hitting a sweet curling strike into the bottom right corner of the net.

The summer signing went mad, whipping off his shirt and running to the corner of the east stand where it meets the south, roaring at them all. It was his third goal in six starts in all competitions since the Premier League season began. Not bad for a defensive midfielder.

In his euphoria he forgot that Spurs actually wanted to win the game. Johnson had run and grabbed the ball out of the net and he screamed across to Palhinha to get his shirt back on so they could run back and try to find a winner.

That did not come as Spurs returned to looking disjointed again in the 3-4-3 formation they ended the game in.

It was yet another far from impressive Premier League performance at home - the Burnley game aside. It's a positive certainly that Tottenham are coming back to grab points in matches they have not played well in but it's also an indicator that Frank's side is still very much in the making.

"Yeah, you can say that. I think that is probably fair," the Dane said of that suggestion. "I think the first half was good, I was happy with that in many ways. I felt we were on top, created two or three very good chances and got into a lot of dangerous situations where we didn’t create a chance where we should have created more.

"You know you are thinking, ‘yes this is very good, produce a lot of crosses and we are on track’. Football is not like 'Wolves please roll over'. It is the Premier League and it is extremely competitive.

"So, you’re going into the second half and thinking I know it is not like you score, but I think OK, it could be good. I think the big change second half was probably their goal. It changed the momentum of the game and then at half-time they changed to a 5-3-2. I think that made it more difficult. Not that we didn’t know they could do it, but of course how do we get the message across to the players?"

He added: "Of course we got a little bit on about the pressure and getting it right, but the goal meant we probably lost a bit of structure and coolness. It took more passes to get up into the right positions, cross it from the right area or produce from the right area instead of a cross with your weaker foot or a difficult position and a shot from 30-yards even though the crowd scream shoot.

"I like the effort and mentality and I think it is huge actually and I meant that to get a point on a night where it is not perfect, especially not in the second half. Now that is two times in a row [in the Premier League] we come back. I think that tells a lot about the players. Yes, we want free-floating, yes we want more and we did not hit our highest performance level today, but when you are down at 90 plus and you get a point, I think that’s positive."

It was fitting that Palhinha scored what was the eighth goal of the day netted in the 90th minute or later in the Premier League, the most in a single day in the history of the competition.

For the midfielder won more duels, with 10, and made more tackles, with five, than any of his team-mates.

"I feel, first of all, glad to score these goals, but the coach is demanding to sometimes in the game be more inside the box and these goals happen because I'm there," said Palhinha. "I'm not too far from the box and I try to get the chances.

"Yeah, today I scored a good goal. But if you ask me if I would change the goal for the victory, for sure, I will do it."

Palhinha is doing his part and even though he was carried away in the emotion of his goal - joining the long line of players booked for celebrating by whipping off a top and getting booked - the 30-year-old was ultimately disappointed.

"It's a draw, but it felt like a loss, to be honest. I think we played a really good first half and when we suffered the goal, we started to drop a lot, in my opinion," he said in his club interview.

"I think we didn't have the patience in the right moments when we needed to find a good way to score and we need to be much more calm in these moments, because it will be key for us.

"I think if we scored probably in the first half, the whole game probably will be much different. But yeah, it's a result that for me, feels like a loss. And I said before that this is the game that is mandatory to win, especially in our home."

When asked where the patience needs to come from, Palhinha touched on something that is noticeable at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

While the blame for just three Premier League wins in 17 home games can be laid squarely at the door of the players and their managers, the frustration manifests in the atmosphere inside the stadium.

The supporters pay some of the top prices in Europe and deserve to watch better but it also opens that whole debate. Are the fans there to push on the team or are the team there to entertain the fans?

That big arena in N17 can certainly feel more like a quiet theatre at times with an audience waiting for the performers to earn their keep rather than a roaring, ear-splitting hellish place for opposition sides to step out into.

When it's at its best, there's an amazing noise inside the stadium, but that's all too rare. That's down to the players but also the fans must play their part and Palhinha admits the unease transfers to the players.

"I think this is the environment as well, which create this on the team," he said. "And we need to push not just the players, but all the supporters as well, because we want to win the game.

"Like the supporters, nobody wants to win more games than us, for sure. The players, the staff, the coach, everyone, the supporters, of course.

"And we need to push us and not in these moments make sometimes the team more, how do I say, not stressful, but like a little bit more on edge, maybe.

"But I think it's normal. As a supporter, I understand sometimes these reactions as well, but we need to push us, not just the players, but as well the supporters, because we want to win the games and we need their support for sure to change these kind of games. I think that will be a key for the future."

One player who felt the fans' frustration more than most was Guglielmo Vicario, particularly when he rushed kicks that were sailing out of play at times. It's the chicken and the egg scenario again. Was the Italian causing the unease in the crowd with his kicking or were the frustrations and the crowd's desire for the ball to be played quickly causing him to rush his kicks.

"I definitely think it's not easy," said Frank. "I need to look at the situations back but at the top of my head it looks like we could have also helped him a little bit more in those situations, open up a bit more. Give him more options.

"There was also one or two where he could have done better but hey, that's part of it. It's not easy but that's not to say he couldn't have done better."

Another player who could have done better was Xavi Simons. The 22-year-old is being billed as the creativity saviour, the answer to a squad that is missing chance creators like James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski as well as finishers like Dominic Solanke and Randal Kolo Muani.

Xavi wants to be the main man but Frank is more often than not pushing him out wide on the left, which is stunting his ability to create and thread the balls through that Richarlison was starved of on Saturday.

It's not helping that the young Dutchman of course has to adapt to the pace and power of the Premier League and he spent as much time bouncing off opponents and on to the floor as he did with the ball.

When football.london told Frank it looked like Xavi struggled to find any rhythm in the game, the Spurs boss said: "I think that's fair to say. I think Xavi, he had some good actions, also carrying the ball forward and you had to foul him three or four times.

"But there was a lot of situations where he was not as sharp, I think that's fair to say. I think he would say the same himself. But I also think it's natural.

"You're coming into a new team, a new league. To find that rhythm quickly is difficult. And I also think that we said the other time, I think we're very happy with the Brighton performance in many ways.

"I think the first half was positive [tonight] also, you know, offensive. But that free flowing to have it enough, you know, that we need to keep working on. And then there are just some days where we don't hit the highest level."

To his credit, Frank is a manager who you can question tactics with. Many of his predecessors bristled if a team selection or tactical decision was questioned by the media. You could often see them looking at the reporter and clearly thinking 'I've got more coaching qualifications on one paragraph on my CV than they'll ever have in their life'.

That's no doubt true but it's important that managers are held accountable and can also explain their decisions without taking umbrage. Frank is well known as someone who is happy to take on people's opinions. He may not agree with them but he is very inclusive with his coaching staff, players and will listen to us mere non-football mortals.

He was asked why he didn't play Xavi through the middle to create chances in a game at home against the bottom side of the league that surely did not require both Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur.

He did not get annoyed or irritated. Instead he took it as all it was - a question.

"I will always look back at it but a good, old coach told me once that the line-up you picked, you did that for a reason and you don’t know what would happen if you pick the other one," he said.

"Maybe you would have lost 2-0. So, I need to go with what I believe in of course. That is not to say I am not watching the game back and not reflecting and thinking about hmm, could we, should we, you never know? I actually think first half was quite good and we created enough.

"We would like to create a bit more, yes but actually after I took Rodri out, you could say it didn’t work because we lost the structure, so who knows? One thing is for sure, we need to do a little bit better in the second half."

But is Xavi being played out wide because he's not up to speed yet with the Premier League so it's less crucial if he loses the ball on the flank than in the centre of the pitch?

"No, I don't think [that]. I think it's trying to get the right balance into the team. For me also to learn the players and find out how we can get the best players on the pitch at the right time," said the Spurs boss.

"So that I'm of course looking into. I'm very aware that Xavi he can play as a 10. He also got in as a 10 against Brighton because that was the third game in a week. And I think that was positive.

"I think today when he got in as a 10, it didn't really work, and that was not only because of him, by the way. I think the team, the whole team was out of sync in the last 35 minutes or something like that.

"But of course, I try to look into what is the best midfield. I think it's fair to say both Rodri and Joao have been very good for us so far in the season. And Lucas has been fantastic so you like to keep your players that are a little bit in the flow."

The problem for Xavi and Spurs was that when he did get his chance infield in the second half there wasn't a balance to the team. Johnson had gone to the right but Kudus had been brought to the left and it did not work.

Xavi and Kudus just kept moving into each other's lanes and eventually the ineffective Dutchman made way for the even more ineffective Odobert.

That Spurs rescued a point and remain third in the fledgling table was the main positive to take away from the game with perhaps Bergvall, Palhinha and some battling displays from Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, who Frank had a long chat to as they walked off the pitch, the only plus points from the players as well as Tel and Sarr's late contribution.

Djed Spence again maintained the theory that he's more effective as a left-back right now than in his natural right-sided role. His delivery isn't good enough into the box at this moment and that's why the left suits him because he can cut inside and get the ball in low rather than cross on the run.

On the other side, Udogie got into some great positions but just takes the wrong option in them, often hesitating when an early ball would slice open the opposition.

Vicario did not have much to deal with but his involvement in the goal will be analysed. In real time, it's difficult to see what more he could have done with a reaction save but slowed down it looks like he could have pushed it wider or even tried to catch it. Life doesn't happen in slow motion unfortunately. His kicking and distribution though was occasionally rushed and messy.

The point will have to do and Tottenham sit four points off leaders Liverpool, who finally lost their maximum start with a defeat to Crystal Palace, who lie second and unbeaten, a point ahead of Spurs.

"I think if you look before the game, you would say that there was a good chance for us to win," said Frank. "But I also said it before the game, we haven't beaten Wolves the last five times, no, six times in a row.

"And also a team that have lost the first five, there's a time where they will get something. And also I said before the game, they had played very, very even games. So it's never easy. That said, I hoped and believed if we hit a top performance, we would win. We didn't hit a top performance.

"I think we hit an average performance, but you do that sometimes. We got a point on a day when not everything worked and then we move forward."

There is no time to dwell too much on this display for Spurs will fly to Norway on Monday evening to prepare for a rematch against Bodo/Glimt on the artificial pitch of the Aspmyra Stadion.

The Norwegian side are enjoying their first ever appearance in the Champions League proper and they gave plenty of teams some tough moments last season in the Europa League.

Tottenham managed to score five goals across two legs against Bodo and while this is a new Spurs under a different manager they need to create and they need to score.

A trip north of the Arctic Circle awaits and the north London side need to find their rhythm and most importantly their balance to stop them sliding back into being a team that is always looking to come from behind.

For Dr Tottenham needs to hang up his white coat and retire. He's been helping others out for far too long.