Thomas Frank has played down being ignored by Spurs players Djed Spence and Micky van de Van on the pitch after Saturday’s home defeat to Chelsea.
The hosts produced an uninspiring performance against their London rivals as they conceded a Joao Pedro goal in the 34th minute at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs fans vented their frustration at the whistle and booed the team as they left the pitch after their third Premier League defeat of the season and fifth successive defeat to the Blues.
Frank said he understood the fans’ frustrations “100 percent” and admitted Chelsea were the better team tonight.
“We all feel the frustration and the emotions,” he said at his post-match press conference (via Football London). “That is part of football. It is extremely painful and that is of course part of the task to face you now and answer the very good questions while you are just burning inside.”
“And you like finding solutions, watching the game back and seeing what went wrong, but I think it’s about trying to stay calm. Overall I think Chelsea were good and we were definitely second best.”
“We performed poorly. I think we lacked energy and intensity and we didn’t have that freshness. Then I think the high pressure they came with, even though we worked on it, we didn’t handle it well enough, so we have to keep working.”
“I think our high pressure was a bit lacking in the beginning until we got on top and then they went 1-0 up and we’re chasing. Then it’s a bad cycle where we’re chasing, without intensity and energy and with bad decisions.”
Thomas Frank responds to the criticism of the Spurs duo after the defeat at Chelsea
Frank glared at Spence and Van de Ven as they walked away from him and down the tunnel, before moving towards the fans to applaud, but insisted it was no big deal.
“All players are of course frustrated,” he said. “They want to do well, they want to win, they want to perform well, so I understand that.
“I think it’s difficult to be consistent in good times and in bad times. That’s why I went to the fans as I do. It’s more fun when we win, I can tell you that.”
Frank continued: “I understand why you’re asking the question, but I think that’s one of the small issues. We’ve got Micky van de Ven and Djed Spence who are doing everything they can. They’re performing very well so far this season and everyone is frustrated. We’re doing things in a different way, so I don’t think it’s a big problem.”
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