How Thomas Frank can save Tottenham’s season after tough-to-take end to winter window
Thomas Frank still has the potential to succeed at Tottenham.
Frank is under intense pressure at Spurs, and fans still need to see a lot of improvement from a team that had undergone heavy investment over the summer.
Tottenham had a quiet winter transfer window, with Conor Gallagher’s arrival from Atletico Madrid being their marquee signing.
Supporters were expecting at least one more face through the door on deadline day, but it was not to be in a tough-to-take end to proceedings.
However, Frank‘s squad is certainly capable of mounting a late charge for the European places.
Xavi Simons and Dominic Solanke can strike up a brilliant partnership
Spurs sit 14th in the Premier League table, and they have still won just two games at home in the league this season.
Despite enduring a slow start to life in N17, it’s clear that Xavi Simons is slowly adapting to the physical nature of the Premier League.
The 22-year-old attacking midfielder has an abundance of potential, and Frank is certain that he can grow into a top-class player for Spurs.
According to Sofascore, Simons created two big chances and completed five successful dribbles in Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Man City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
| Stat | Simons |
| Minutes played | 90 |
| Shots | 5 |
| Pass accuracy | 86% |
| Key passes | 4 |
| Touches | 86 |
Spurs are also dealing with a lot of injuries in attack, but Dominic Solanke’s return to the side has been nothing short of excellent.
Solanke’s two goals against Man City were phenomenal, with the first being assisted by Simons’ excellent through ball.
The English striker is already outperforming his xG by 2.19 in all competitions this season, and he’ll be aiming to better his tally of 16 goals in 2024-25.
If both players can develop a strong partnership, then that is certainly achievable, and Solanke will be aiming to add to his four goals this campaign against Man United on Saturday.
The Sofascore graphic above shows that he has what it takes to be a consistent goalscorer under Frank, and it just depends on whether he can maintain his fitness levels for a prolonged period of time.
Tottenham can achieve anything with Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero in defence
Cristian Romero lashed out at Tottenham’s board once again on Monday, which shows how desperate the captain is for the team to succeed.
Sofascore states that the Argentine centre-back has made 4.2 clearances and 2.6 tackles per Premier League game in 2025-26.
Romero has been a warrior both on and off the pitch, and Frank will take pride in knowing that he has a top-class defender at his disposal.
His partner at the back, Micky van de Ven, isn’t doing too badly either.
The Netherlands international has been superb in both boxes, and he has scored seven goals in all competitions this campaign.
Having played 1970 minutes of Premier League football under Frank, he will certainly be key to Spurs’ European ambitions.
| Stat | Van de Ven |
| Appearances | 22 |
| Pass accuracy | 89.4% |
| Clearances per game | 4 |
| Recoveries per game | 3.5 |
Both players are linked with moves away in the summer, but the pressure is now on them to lead Tottenham out of a worrying situation.
Frank’s success at Brentford shows he is able to work effectively against the odds, and there is still time for him to make up the 11-point gap between Spurs and fifth-placed Chelsea.
And if Tottenham can go on a good run in the knockout stages of the Champions League, then that could potentially save his job and their season.
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