Spurs 1-1 Sunderland | Every word of Thomas Frank’s post-match press conference

Thomas Frank spoke to the media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium following our 1-1 draw with Sunderland on Sunday.

Here’s what he had to say...

Did the team start to sit back a bit towards the end of the second period?

Thomas: “Yeah, I don't think that's too wrong. I'm pleased with the first half, I think we showed a lot of good intentions, a lot of good play, I think we came into some very good offensive situations where we lacked the cutting-edge quality, so that was positive, and I think the big headline is we didn't score the 2-0 goal. We didn't kill the game off for 2-0, then the game, we are out of sight. We gave nothing away throughout the game. We have one bit where they do a top bit of play and then it's 1-1, so, for me, it was the 2-0 goal we lacked. I think first half was very good, we were totally dominant. Second half, not as dominant, but we still get into some very good situations, have some good counter-attack situations where we need to get more out of it. You can't rely on in the Premier League just to win 1-0.”

Were you affected by having a lack of like-for-like substitutions?

Thomas: “I think it was that we lacked a little extra freshness. I looked at some teams last night, they just put three players on like-for-like, and then they run away with the win – a club we can't speak about – but that's probably also a little bit in it. So let me put it that way, that would have helped us, it's not the same that we couldn't have put the score to 2-0 for the first 17 minutes.”

How do you reflect on the timing of Brennan Johnson’s transfer after Mohammed Kudus went off injured?

“Decisions are made and decisions I'm backing in every aspect. There's always more bigger picture stuff to some of those decisions. Sometimes it can look like perfect timing, sometimes it looks like not so perfect timing.”

Do you accept it looks like a risk to have let him go?

Thomas: “I think it's very important (to highlight) we took the decision before Mo got injured. We don't know how that looks like. So I think that's one thing. And sometimes when you take that decision, sometimes you can't delay them if you want to, for example.”

Is it important to make an attacking signing?

Thomas: “Yeah, as I think I said, we are out there. We are really, how can you say, alert. The club really wants to see what we can do to strengthen the squad and the team. I say many times it's a difficult window and we still need to have the short-term solution to be the long-term solution as well.”

Can you explain the reasoning behind letting Brennan Johnson leave?

Thomas: “I think the depth is one thing. Sometimes, you know, the decisions make more sense further down the line. And now there was an opportunity to sell a player, which the club hasn't been that good at in the past and sometimes that window can be small, if you want to do that, for example.”

Did it leave you light in attacking areas?

Thomas: “You can say that if we had Xavi (Simons) and Mo for today, then I think we have enough. But now we, for this game, didn't have them. Mo only for, what, 10 minutes? So there's just some games where you're very light, and that happens for teams.”

Was this a tough situation to put Luca Williams-Barnett into if you’d used him?

Thomas: “Yeah, I think it was not a game where we were just, boom, on top of it, and we just need that goal, and we were just controlling the game. So if that was the case, then it could have been a different decision. I think when we put Joao and Lucas on, there's been a lot of running, and it was a little bit back and forth. So Lucas played 10 many times, and been a very good creative player for us, so that was more or less like-for-like (positionally in this game) for Wilson, and then with Joao for Archie, it was a game where we, I think it's fair to say, maybe lacked the exact cutting edge. Maybe it would be good just to make sure we could win 1-0, which we unfortunately couldn't.”

Can you talk about the pressing and urgency from the team today, compared to Brentford?

Thomas: “I think there's two things in it. There's always different opponents, and then there's always a difference by playing home and away, in terms of when you play with short turnaround games. That was, I think, the biggest thing. It was not that we didn't want to press high against Brentford, so if you saw that game, we still tried to press high, they just played a little bit longer. That means it was not as successful, it was not that visible. I think the biggest thing there was we just gave the ball away 200 times. That didn't help.”

Were you pleased with Mathys Tel today?

Thomas: “Yeah, I'm very happy with Mathys stepping in and looking very positive. That was a big positive, I would say.”

What was the reasoning behind Ben Davies coming in for Djed Spence?

Thomas: “It was nice that he scored the goal! I felt for this game that we needed a left-footer, so that was the biggest reason. I think in the build-up, he had two fantastic passes going forward, also balls in behind and gave that little bit of calmness plus a bit of leadership and helping Mathys in front of him. Then we’re playing five games in a short amount of time.”

Are you saying it would have been impossible to Brennan Johnson to leave at a later time?

Thomas: “No, no, I just say that sometimes the timings are not and I am not talking only about the Brennan situation, but I guess there is two clubs that need to agree and a player that needs to agree, so there is always a lot of things that impact things.”

Did that performance warrant the boos from the crowd at full-time?

Thomas: “What I said many times, I liked the backing of the fans for the team throughout the 90 minutes. I think that was excellent and pushed us forward in many ways. I am sure everyone could acknowledge especially the first half was positive and a step in the right direction, getting in good areas, doing all the right things and I am sure 100 per cent sure everyone could acknowledge the effort and hard work of the players. That is all you can ask for and then we’re all a little disappointed that we couldn’t get the three points.”