After leading his team to a 3-0 home victory over Burnley in the first round of the new Premier League season, Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank attended a press conference.
Congratulations, Thomas. Starting the season with a three-goal win and a clean sheet—does that feel close to perfect?
It might be. It’s a perfect start, or a dream start, and we all know we need to carry this form forward. Today, I’ll just enjoy this win, and I hope the players, the club, and the fans can too, because that’s important.
I think overall the team performed well, but not perfectly. We played well against a strong opponent. Everyone knows Premier League games are never easy, especially coming so soon after our match against Paris Saint-Germain.
There’s no room for complaints. Whether the gap between games is two, three, four days, or even just one, I’ll do everything in my power to get the team ready. Though it’s worth noting that PSG play tomorrow night, while we’re playing today. I spoke to Anthony about this—I remember a few years ago, Manchester City also had to play on a Saturday instead of Sunday. I don’t know who makes the fixture schedules, but those making the decisions might want to consider the players.
That said, our medical and fitness departments did an excellent job ensuring the players were in top condition. I’m happy to see eight players start again.
What do you make of Richarlison’s two brilliant goals?
He was fantastic to get those goals. The first one, while not effortless, was relatively easier. Having a striker who can take those chances and help us win the game deserves all the praise he gets. He played well against PSG, and today he stood out even more—he worked incredibly hard, drove the team forward, linked play well, held the ball effectively, controlled the rhythm, and then those two wonderful finishes. I’m really happy for him, and again, credit to our fitness and medical teams—they’ve put in a lot of work to get him in this shape. I think some of you know he missed the first friendly because we wanted to build up his fitness gradually.
This is an ongoing process, and we’ll have to stay on top of it all season. After all, this is only the second game of the season; there’s a long way to go, but his performance is very encouraging. I heard the second goal came after 17 passes, with every player touching the ball, capped off by two great pieces of play—first Mohamed Kudus, then Richarlison with that brilliant finish. It’s a shame we might already have a candidate for goal of the season so early, but this one will definitely be in the running.
You fielded young midfielders—you must be pleased with their performance?
I’m very pleased. I’ve praised Pape [Sarr] many times before, so I won’t go into that today—I want to highlight the others. I thought Archie Gray did well; he had a solid first half and really came into his own in the second. I need to remind myself and everyone that young players need time to develop. You can’t just put them on the pitch and expect them to excel immediately—that takes an extremely, extremely, extremely high level of talent. Archie and Bergvall are very talented, but they need time, so I’m happy with how he played. Lucas also had a good overall game; both players contributed well.
What did you say to Richarlison when he came off?
I just told him he’d done brilliantly, that I appreciated his performance and his effort on the pitch, and that we’d take good care of him.
What qualities does Archie Gray have to excel in the No.6 role?
We need to be careful about pigeonholing players into positions too quickly. I think he’s a versatile player—he can definitely play center-back and right-back, but I believe he’s better suited to midfield, though he can handle all three positions. I love his energetic style of play; he covers a lot of ground defensively, excels in one-on-one duels, handles pressure well, and is strong at carrying the ball forward.
Why wasn’t Bissouma in the squad?
Unfortunately, he got injured in training yesterday—really bad luck. We’ll need to run further checks to assess the extent of the injury.
This is a World Cup year—does that give Richarlison extra motivation?
Absolutely, but to be honest, before the season started, I expected him to be an important player for us, and that hasn’t changed. Of course, everyone’s happy today, and he should be especially pleased.
But having said that, we can’t get carried away—it’s just one game. Enjoy the next 24 hours, then move on. Next up, we’ll prepare for the match against Manchester City.
Have you always been clear that you wanted Richarlison to stay?
Yes, I’ve always admired Richarlison. I thought he was excellent when he was at Everton. He’s had some bad luck with injuries since joining Spurs, so we knew we needed to build up his form gradually and protect him. We can’t think everything’s perfect just because he’s played well in two games in a row.
He’s performed well in these two matches, but we need more time to confirm his form—though the signs so far are good.
Is having him compete with Dominic Solanke the ideal scenario for you?
The ideal scenario is having two top strikers; we need that depth. Hopefully, we’ll play over 60 games this season—if we do, that means we’re doing something right—and to achieve that, we need cover in every position. It’s essential.
Regarding Richarlison, are you saying you might not start him in every game to manage his minutes wisely?
That’s fair to say. Over the past three or four seasons, he hasn’t been able to play every game due to injuries, so I think we need to use him wisely. What’s the right way? I’m not sure—maybe taking him off early, or bringing him on from the bench.
There are various approaches, like letting him play five games in a row. We also need to learn more about him—that’s something we’ll work on; I don’t know him as well as I’d like yet.
The fans gave Matthijs Tel a warm reception when he was warming up—what was your reaction to that?
I was extremely pleased with the fans’ response to Matthijs. As I said yesterday, I believe true Spurs fans support him, and they showed that today.
Do you expect any transfer activity this week?
We’ll definitely be monitoring the transfer market. As I’ve said before, Daniel, John, and Vinai are working tirelessly to improve the squad, but we’ll only make moves if we can bring in players who strengthen the team. I want to stick to that principle.
There have been rumors in the last 12-24 hours that a deal for Eberechi Eze is close—anything you’d like to say about that?
I have a principle: I prefer to talk about the players already in our squad. I don’t want to comment too much on other rumors.
