Despite Tottenham’s defeat in Paris, Thomas Frank was delighted with the response he saw from his players on Wednesday, and admitted that he liked one particular aspect of his side’s performance.
Following Tottenham’s drubbing in the North London derby, many supporters may have feared the worst in Parc des Princes.
However, Spurs more than held their own for large parts of the game and were it not for a penalty and another sloppy goal they conceded, they may have walked away from France with a draw.
Ahead of the game, we heard promises from the Tottenham camp of a response following the NLD debacle, and Thomas Frank was happy with what he saw from his players.
Thomas Frank reveals what pleased him most about Tottenham’s performance against PSG
The Tottenham boss admitted that he was delighted with the character his players showed on the pitch on Wednesday following their thrashing at the Emirates.
He noted that his side played with the king of aggression that he always wants to see, suggesting that Spurs could have walked away with a result if the rub of the green had gone their way.
When asked if he was proud of the performance that his side delivered against PSG, Frank told Football.London: “Yeah, definitely. I’m pleased with the performance. It was the reaction I wanted from the players, from the team. We’ve been working very hard on that, the players, the staff, me, to make sure that we responded well and bounced back because that’s crucial after a bad performance.
“Today I saw more identity of the team I want to create, we want to create. Much more character, personality, and aggressiveness. Three words you need to have in any team, no matter how you want to do, how you want to play, whatever formation, whatever. Today we saw it, and I’m pleased with that.
“Of course, I think it was performance that was up there where we could get something out of the game, a draw or a win. So that’s a little frustrating thing that we conceded some goals.
“Of course, one with a little bit of margin from Vitinha, not top corner but top, top corner. And then, of course, goal three and four. Those are the ones we definitely need to avoid if we want to get something out of here, but something to build on. Strikers scoring two goals. The whole team, I think, all performed well. Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall, positive.”
Frank admits this is how he wants Spurs to play
Over the past few days, many have questioned if Frank is the right fit for a club like Tottenham, questioning his ability to coach sides to play on the front foot.
The 52-year-old has now explained that he has always emphasised aggression and pressing man-to-man, which is what we saw his side do in Paris.
Frank added: “As you could see, the game plan was to really go after PSG, man to man. If anyone’s followed me just a tiny bit, they know that that’s what I want.
“That’s much more the identity, that aggressiveness, that dynamic into the team, and to do that against PSG, who are that fluid and that mobile all over the pitch, I thought we needed a more running, powerful midfield across the midfield four.”