‘Thomas Frank plan for Will Lankshear at Tottenham clear’ after Brentford bid
Will Lankshear will be hoping to make an impression on Thomas Frank this summer.
Lankshear scored his first senior goal for Spurs last season in the UEFA Europa League against Galatasaray in November before being shown a red card in the second half.
The 20-year-old was then sent on loan to West Brom for the second half of the season, where he struggled to make an impression, making only four starts in the Championship.
Now back at Hotspur Way, he has started his pre-season under Frank, who has a decision to make on the striker’s long-term future.
Frank bid for Lankshear at Brentford
Ryan Mason’s appointment as West Brom manager last month has seen Lankshear linked with a return to The Hawthorns this summer.
The striker has had no shortage of interest from Championship clubs but has reported back to the Lilywhites, as Frank wants to assess Lankshear during pre-season.
As revealed by Football London (8 July), Brentford had a bid accepted for the England Under-20 international while he was at Sheffield United, before he joined Spurs.
Therefore, Frank will likely have a clear plan set out for Lankshear, having been aware of his development for a long time.
The Englishman’s prospects have been helped by the fact that fellow forward Alejo Véliz has joined Rosario Central on loan, while Richarlison is also expected to depart this summer.
While this will help Lankshear’s cause, he will still have to prove himself worthy of a spot in Frank’s team among the young talent at Tottenham.
Frank incentivised to develop homegrown players
One of Frank’s biggest appeals to Tottenham’s hierarchy is his ability to develop players, and the Dane will be incentivised to pay a particular focus on the homegrown members of the squad.
The club are having to play catch-up as Brandon Austin is currently Spurs’ sole club-trained senior player who qualifies under UEFA’s regulations.
However, Spurs have a growing number of exciting prospects coming through the academy, and Frank should arguably focus his efforts on developing the likes of Lankshear and Mikey Moore.
Not only will this help the Lilywhites in squad building for Europe, but it will also give Tottenham a more local feel, which goes a long way in building strong relations with fans.
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