The key Thomas Frank difference to Tottenham’s statement win at Man City | OneFootball

Lads, it’s Thomas Frank’s Tottenham. A statement result for a new regime came at the ground that staged the most glorious triumph of Angeball. If Frank’s 2-0 win is statistically less impressive than Ange Postecoglou’s 4-0 evisceration of Manchester City last season, it came in a manner to suggest that this Tottenham Hotspur are built on sturdier foundations.

Yet if this season looks like a reaction to last term for Tottenham, the danger for City is that it is simply a continuation. Four summer signings started and six 2025 buys but, for Pep Guardiola, there may be a depressing familiarity to this. City conceded a goal to a counterattack and another because of a goalkeeping error. They were recurring themes last year. Guardiola tried six players in the three attacking midfield positions but without suggesting he knows his strongest side. Erling Haaland got too little service. City were emphatically beaten by the side who finished 17th last season.

If that was an indictment of Postecoglou, there was a fragility to his football and there is a solidity to Frank’s. The Dane could be an advertisement for pragmatism and, particularly after last year, pragmatism might have a beauty for Spurs. They were expertly organised, brimming with a powerful physicality. Frank had deployed a back five against Paris Saint-Germain, implying that tactic would be reserved for elite opponents. Perhaps City are less scary but he only fielded two central defenders.

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Frank celebrates with captain Cristian Romero after Tottenham’s second clean sheet in a row (Reuters)

Like much else he decided, it was the right choice. He built from the back. “The clean sheet makes me very happy,” said Frank. “It is a big thing we have been working on. Last year we had six clean sheets.” It was a reference to Spurs’ poor defensive record under Postecoglou, a recognition it needed to get better and a demonstration it will. He talked about “defensive principles”; as his reign unravelled, Postecoglou preferred to cite his attacking ethos.

Frank’s clean sheet came with a defence he inherited. In a world where perceptions of clubs can be overly shaped by the transfer window, Spurs have had a terrible week. On the pitch, they have had an outstanding one. This put Eberechi Eze’s change of heart into context. Perhaps, indeed, Spurs’ second goal stemmed from their failure to sign the Arsenal-bound midfielder. Without him, Pape Matar Sarr was instead used as the toughest of No 10s and he won the ball from Nico Gonzalez; a goal was created by pressing in the City penalty area.

It was scored by Joao Palhinha, the ball-winner extraordinaire. For all Spurs’ tradition of flair players, perhaps their signature signing this summer will be a defensive midfielder they borrowed from Bayern Munich. “The coach pushed me to come,” said Palhinha, who was outstanding. “Palhinha, wow,” gasped Frank in admiration. The other newcomer, Mohammed Kudus, seemed impossible to bundle off the ball. “I think it is fair to say we got a few questions about the transfer market, why not and what if, but we brought two top players into the club,” added Frank. Those two were part of the new, savvy Spurs.

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Goalscorer Palhinha revealed Frank’s impact on his decision to join Tottenham (Action Images via Reuters)

The City newcomers had less to savour. Rayan Ait-Nouri’s home bow was curtailed by injury. James Trafford’s Etihad Stadium debut was still worse. A goalkeeper who did not concede two goals in a league game last season at Burnley had to retrieve the ball from his net twice before half-time. The second was his fault, glaringly from a failed attempt to pass from his six-yard box, attempting a risky ball to Nico Gonzalez, finding only Sarr and, though he saved Richarlison’s shot, not Palhinha’s follow-up. Trafford may reflect on two similar incidents, almost a mirror image. Rayan Cherki nearly scored in the same goal after Guglielmo Vicario’s misjudged attempt to pass out from the back. That, however, may soon be forgotten.

Yet a more pertinent comparison was with the goalkeeper on the bench. Spurs’ second goal was a reminder of why Ederson – back on the bench after gastroenteritis but attracting interest from Galatasaray – has been so fundamental to Guardiola’s style of football. “He made a good first game, James, and I decided to continue,” said Guardiola, explaining why he retained the summer signing.

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James Trafford had a home debut to forget (Action Images via Reuters)

Meanwhile, City’s problems against swift breaks continued. Richarlison escaped from the substitute Nathan Ake, who was on for Ait-Nouri, on the Spurs right. A sliding Rico Lewis could not prevent the faster Brennan Johnson from finishing. It completed a Mancunian double for the Europa League final scorer.

City, meanwhile, had scored four at Wolves last week but drew a blank. “Everyone said everything was fine but I said it was just the first game,” reflected Guardiola, who tinkered in search of a solution. The greatest menace came from Omar Marmoush, but he was one of the first replaced.

The closing stages nevertheless amounted to a test of Tottenham’s fortitude. Two-and-a-half years ago, City came from 2-0 down to beat Tottenham 4-2. Ten days earlier, Spurs had led Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 and still lost on penalties. “We referenced that at half-time,” said Frank.

There was no repeat of either. Instead, it could have been 3-0. Trafford made an injury-time double save from the substitutes Dominic Solanke and Wilson Odobert. But his afternoon will be remembered for neither stop but the false start to his second coming at City.