The media must stop lecturing Tottenham fans on how to feel about Thomas Frank - Opinion
Tottenham Hotspur supporters are being told what they should think about Thomas Frank by ex-players and commentators alike, and it needs to stop immediately.
Frank has been a disaster for Tottenham Hotspur and anyone who thinks otherwise has likely not tuned in to many of the club’s matches.
Spurs made some big signings in the summer after winning the Europa League, spending more than £50m each on Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons. However, everything has fallen to pieces, with Frank’s team out of both domestic cups and sitting 14th in the Premier League table.
Despite this, members of the British sports media are giving the Dane a level of lenience which feels almost unprecedented. Worse still, they are trying to control the way Tottenham fans think, and this quite simply crosses every line imaginable.
Tottenham supporters are being cautioned by the thought police
Frank has received heavy backing from former players in recent weeks. Only a few days ago, Glenn Murray declared on BBC Final Score that the bosses’ job should ‘not be in jeopardy at all’.
Joe Cole was the next ex-Premier League player to give his opinion, and his comments went further than backing Frank. The 44-year-old took aim at both the Spurs fans and the squad for their behaviour towards the manager, describing it as ‘nonsense’.
“They won’t win trophies, think it’s one or two in 30, 40 years,” said Cole when addressing how a change in manager would help Tottenham. Not only is this statement factually incorrect, but it disregards the fact Ange Postecoglou won the club silverware a matter of months ago.
Then came the worst comment of all by commentator Ian Darke, who suggested Spurs fans should ‘lay off’ Frank and give him a chance. Because apparently an entire pre-season and six months of a competitive campaign is not long enough to get a team like Tottenham playing decent football.
Darke incorrectly stated Spurs finished third in the opening stage of the Champions League. Also, he claimed Frank likely knows what he is doing because of what he did at Brentford.
Ah yes, of course, finishing mid-table with another team means Frank has what it takes to bring success to Tottenham. Come on, we are talking about a side who had, until recent times, been one of the best teams in the country for years!
Thomas Frank’s Champions League success does not mean he should keep his job
Credit where credit is due – Thomas Frank may not have done anything to improve Tottenham domestically, but he has overseen a fourth-place finish in the league phase of the Champions League.
However, look at the teams Tottenham defeated and where they finished. Villarreal in 35th, Slavia Prague in 34th, Eintracht Frankfurt in 33rd, Copenhagen in 31st. These are teams that, in all honesty, might struggle to survive in the Premier League.
Spurs did get the better of Borussia Dortmund in fairness, but they failed to beat Bodo/Glimt (23rd) and Monaco (21st). On top of this, Frank’s men conceded five goals to a PSG team who have now suffered three defeats in the competition and most recently drew at home against Newcastle United.
Ange Postecoglou was not afforded the same luxury as Frank
Perhaps the media will eventually turn on Frank as they did with Postecoglou, but the reason they grew to despise the Aussie was that he did not surrender to their control. Postecoglou said what he wanted and refused to compromise on how he set up his team.
Frank, on the other hand, does not seem to risk offending anybody except his team’s very own supporters, whom he has called out on a number of occasions. Therefore, why would the media not favour him over a man who constantly put them in their place?
This is problematic because the press are supposed to be neutral, but this is clearly not the case. If they were, there would be pressure from them towards the Spurs board to admit that hiring Frank was a mistake.
Tottenham fans can think for themselves
Even if these former players and pundits are going to give Frank their support, Spurs fans who spent their lives following their club are allowed to think whatever they want.
The attempts of people like Cole and Darke to dictate the behaviour of Tottenham’s supporters is nothing short of outrageous, and it must be challenged.
Ultimately, Frank is not doing a good job at Spurs. He is not the sole issue, but saying he is not part of the problem at all is ignorant of what is actually going on. If Tottenham fans want him gone, that is up to them, and no one has the right to silence their voices.
READ MORE – Robbie Keane reacts to rumours he could replace Thomas Frank at Tottenham
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