Thomas Frank has revealed why John Heitinga was the perfect candidate to become his new assistant at Tottenham Hotspur.
It has been a busy day at Tottenham Hotspur, which began with Carlos Raphael Moersen joining the club as their new Director of Football Operations.
Little did Spurs fans know, this would not be the only big announcement coming out of North London. It was later revealed that Tottenham had named John Heitinga as their new assistant coach.
The former Premier League star has already racked up some valuable coaching experience, and his appointment shows there is ambition to turn the current situation at Spurs around.
Thomas Frank raves about John Heitinga’s experience
It would appear Thomas Frank is delighted to be joined by John Heitinga, because the Dane has already been singing the praises of his new vice coach.
Frank believes Heitinga possesses the ‘perfect profile’ because of the vast experience he has gathered in the Netherlands.
When asked if he drove the process to secure Heitinga, Frank told Tottenham Hotspur: “Yeah, it was a process we did together. Of course, I was a big part of it because Johan [Lange], Fabio [Paratici} and I were the main drivers of that.
“I think he was a standout candidate with everything he’s experienced. Of course, obviously, a top playing career, that’s one thing.
“But also like how he then did after that in terms of his experience in the academy of Ajax. Of course, when you play there, that’s one thing. But when you also go back and coach there, that’s one of the best academies in the world. So he walked the hard way.
“And then on top of that, had two good experiences in Premier League in West Ham and Liverpool. And now also been trying to stand out there where there’s a bit more noise and wind sometimes. That gave him the perfect profile.
“Then, of course, I’ve met him now a few times before and all the character reference we took, just a top guy, top integrity, top football person.”
Heitinga is a smart appointment by Tottenham
Frank appears to be safe in his role as Spurs for now, but this does not mean he will continue to be given more time if his team’s results do not improve.
Bringing in Heitinga is a clever move because he will be useful in helping Frank to succeed at Tottenham. However, if the former Brentford boss is still unable to change the club’s fortunes, the ideal interim manager is already in place to keep things ticking until the end of the season.
Heitinga already has experience as the primary manager of a big European club, so he will have no problem stepping up to the main role if he is required to do so.
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