LONDON, Jan 20 : Thomas Frank could smile at last on Tuesday as a 2-0 victory for his Tottenham Hotspur team against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League released some of the pressure that appeared to be reaching a critical level.
Defeat and another poor display against the German club would have left the Dane’s future at the north London club in severe peril. But an impressive first half with goals by Cristian Romero and Dominic Solanke lifted the gloom and put Tottenham on the cusp of a last-16 place.
Frank said he would enjoy a couple of glasses of red wine to savour the victory but the reality is he will be back in the firing line away at Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday.
Tottenham have slumped to 14th in the table with two wins from their last 13 Premier League games and any goodwill he experienced from the fans on Tuesday could evaporate quickly if things go badly at Turf Moor.
“I think the big thing is to build, of course, on this. We need to build on this with performances and a win against Burnley on Saturday,” Frank told reporters.
“I actually think, and I keep saying it because I mean it, this is the eighth game in a row where I think we consistently performed quite well. But we haven’t been able to get over the line, get the little margins with us.
“So we just need to do the same thing, keep believing, and then we just know that things will turn.”
The atmosphere after the 2-1 defeat by West Ham United on Saturday had turned toxic with fans mocking Frank with chants of ‘getting sacked in the morning’.
His name was not exactly being sung from the rafters on Tuesday, but the mood was transformed.
“I don’t know. It was just extremely nice to experience. And as I say, the way they pushed us forward and that energy between the fans and the players was magic,” Frank said.
“And that’s what we need to create more of.”
Frank, who has struggled to bring his methodology of his seven-year Brentford tenure to Tottenham since replacing Ange Postecoglou, stressed again that he felt he and the club’s hierarchy were singing from the same hymn sheet.
“What I feel the whole time is that I feel that the staff is with us,” he said. “I think the players are with us, the ownership, everyone wants the same thing, and we’re on the same page. We do a lot of things in the right direction.
“Today it was a big performance and a big win. But I’m also very aware that we need to keep that consistency and build on this.”
