Tottenham Hotspur

Ali Speechly
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Thomas Frank's Tottenham is clearly a work in progress.

Any hope of our 'Dr Tottenham' issue being a thing of the past soon faded with a frustratingly poor performance against Wolves on Saturday.

In particular, Xavi Simons looked like a player anxious to prove his worth and desperate to know the best position on the pitch to do this. Meanwhile, the lack of a quality striker was painfully obvious.

However, as disappointing as it was to gift points to Wolves, so far this season there are lots more reasons to feel positive about what Frank is developing than there are causes for concern.

Indeed, the fact we salvaged points by coming from behind against Brighton and Wolves is credit to the mindset that Frank has instilled in his squad.

There is a stronger psychological resilience that is complimented by a clearer understanding of roles and responsibilities depending on game state, carefully orchestrated by a manager who is not afraid to make decisive changes.

You could argue that we should not concede to these teams in the first place, but as other results this weekend proved, anything is possible in the most competitive football league in the world, and arrogance will be duly punished.

Frank strikes me as a details man who understands that as much as you can plan for success, you also have to react in the moment – because football is about moments. We share them. We analyse them. We dispute them. Sometimes I wonder if we have forgotten how to truly enjoy them – as evidenced by the backlash on social media following Joao Palhinha's goal celebration.

There is a long season ahead, full of trial and error while Frank and his players learn the best way forward. Personally, I'll be celebrating the positive moments as much as possible.

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Bodo/Glimt sporting director Havard Sakariassen says the club have "changed" since last season's Europa League semi-final defeat by Tottenham as the two sides prepare to meet again on Tuesday in the Champions League in Norway.

Under Ange Postecoglou, Spurs won 3-1 in the fist leg before a 2-0 victory in the Arctic Circle to secure progression to the final they would go on to win.

But Sakariassen believes Bodo have learned from this experience as they embark on their first Champions League campaign.

"Tottenham actually played a really good game here at Aspmyra against us," he said.

"Really well organised, loyal to the plan and, of course, they have really world-class players. If they perform that well in their task, it is always going to be tough for us.

"For us, it was a lot of learning. The reflection for us after the game was [to ask if] there was enough level on the physical side. So, actually, that brought something to the table for us that we are grateful to have the knowledge about.

"It means we have since then changed and worked in a slightly better and more reflective way to see if we can realise the potential in the physical side of our players.

"That made us stronger and hopefully we will see that when we see them again that we actually moved up a step. That will be interesting."

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Spurs and Wolves.

Here are some of your comments:

Spurs fans

Mickey: Battling point against a side we should be beating. The lack of a dominant striker is holding us back. As hard as he works, as hard as he tries, Richarlison isn't anywhere close to being the answer. Bergvall is posing more of a threat. There's so many positives under Frank and this will improve no doubts, but we can't keep relying on bit-part forwards.

Alan: Same old Spurs. You could put your house on them either losing or dropping points against the bottom team. Happens every time. Xavi Simons is not good enough - lightweight. Well done Wolves - should have won the game.

Helen: Simply not good enough. It should have been three points for the taking, Wolves at home. More passion, more determination, and tighter play going forward please - COYS!

Kevin: Woeful. Frank's summary after the game beggars belief. Wolves deserved a win - they were faster and won every first and second ball, while Spurs were lethargic at best. These high-earning superstars need to knuckle down.

Wolves fans

Jill: I am gutted at the result but thought we played really well. A back four is the way to play and Santiago Bueno is a must to start. We looked solid at the back and pace up front. The only disappointment is why Hwang is playing. Surely Fer Lopez should be starting. We played like we know the team can play and hope that this is the springboard to kick start our season.

Stanley: Far better than any other league games this season. We did well under pressure but again we failed to keep a clean sheet. Conceding in the 94th minute feels hard to take but at least we got a point at last. We have to kick on from this now. We know our best starting line up and we need to keep it. We have some good subs to use so not all doom and gloom yet.

Mel: At last we showed some cohesion within the team. Good performance by the lads and after making nine changes we saw a fighting spirit. Unlucky to concede the equaliser but it's still a good point away from home!

Neil: I thought it was an impressive display. Hopefully he can stick with these players and system for the next matches and surely Sam Johnstone has to keep his place.

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank, speaking to BBC Sport: "It's always nice to get an equaliser and get something out of a hard-fought game.

"First half was good. We got into a lot of dangerous positions. We were clearly on top and in control.

"Second half we started fine but after the goal we lost control and our structure. We were not cool enough.

"The effort and mentality from the players was very good. In the end we got that goal.

"The classic thing of rushng it a bit and Wolves changed their system. It changed our positions a bit and adapting to that and then the goals and the emotion of it we gave simple passes away.

"We kept going.

"Top composure from Joao [Palhinha]. Great finish. We needed something special and we got that.

"I think the foundation is in a good place. Defending well. Working hard, running hard. The offensive part of it is the thing we have to add layers to. I'd have loved us to do more today. That's part of the development."

Did you know?

• Tottenham have won just three of their last 17 Premier League home games (D4 L10). Since the first game of this spell (November 10th 2024 v Ipswich), no ever-present side has earned fewer home points in the competition than Spurs (13 - level with West Ham).

Pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards join host Kelly Cates to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday’s Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Crystal Palace 2-1 Liverpool

• Nottingham Forest 0-1 Sunderland

Emily Salley
BBC Sport journalist

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With Liverpool losing their first game of the season earlier on Saturday, Spurs had the chance to move up to second in the table and close the gap on the league leaders.

Playing against a side who had taken just one point from the last 27 available, the opportunity was there for the taking.

Thomas Frank's side often looked too predictable going forward as their countless crosses into the box were easily dealt with by Sam Johnstone.

Perhaps Mohammed Kudus could have done better with his header from close range, which was tipped onto the crossbar by the Wolves keeper, while Lucas Bergvall should have at least forced a save when he had clear sight on goal in the first half.

The hosts appeared to lack spirit after going behind as they were sloppy in possession and struggled to create anything worthwhile in front of goal.

But a moment of brilliance from Joao Palhinha saved the day to keep Tottenham third in the Premier League, just four points behind Liverpool.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Tottenham's performance

What did you make of Wolves' display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Thomas Frank makes seven changes to the Tottenham team that started in Wednesday's 3-0 win over Doncaster in the Carabao Cup.

Antonin Kinsky, Pedro Porro, Kevin Danso, Archie Gray, Brennan Johnson, Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert all make way.

Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Destiny Udogie, Lucas Bergvall, Mohammed Kudus and Richarlison come back into the starting line-up.

Tottenham XI: Vicario, Spence, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Bentancur, Bergvall, Palhinha, Simons, Kudus, Richarlison

Substitutes: Kinsky, Danso, Tel, Gray, Johnson, Porro, Odobert, Sarr, Scarlett

There is only the one change to Vitor Pereira's Wolves after their 2-0 win against Everton in the Carabao Cup.

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde is replaced by Joao Gomes.

Wolves XI: Johnstone, Doherty, H Bueno, Krejci, S Bueno, Munetsi, Andre, J Gomes, Arias, Strand Larsen, Hwang

Substitutes: Sa, Moller Wolfe, Agbadou, Arokodare, R Gomes, Toti, Bellegarde, Lopez, Tchatchoua

There are seven games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Brentford v Manchester United (12:30)

• Chelsea v Brighton - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• Crystal Palace v Liverpool - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Leeds United v Bournemouth

• Manchester City v Burnley

• Nottingham Forest v Sunderland (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

• Tottenham v Wolves (20:00)

Kick-off times 15:00 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Crystal Palace v Liverpool" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Nottingham Forest v Sunderland", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

Things are getting desperate for Wolves after five straight defeats in the league, but it is hard to make a case for them getting anything here.

Tottenham showed great resilience to come back late on to rescue a point at Brighton last week. They have got that side to them now where you feel they can get something from games, even when things go wrong for them.

I was at their Champions League win over Villarreal when they huffed and puffed but still got the job done. This game might not be entirely straightforward for them either, but I am expecting the same outcome.

Sutton's prediction: 1-0

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Tom McCoy
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham look to continue their strong start to the season against a Wolves side still pointless in the Premier League. BBC Sport takes a look at some of the key themes before Saturday's match.

Spurs will begin as overwhelming favourites in this game despite failing to win any of their previous five meetings with Wolves. They lost four of those games, with their last victory in this fixture coming courtesy of Harry Kane's 250th goal for the club in August 2022.

Tottenham will be optimistic of putting that record right given their promising performances under Thomas Frank. Wednesday's Carabao Cup victory over Doncaster Rovers made it five wins from eight matches under the Dane. Coincidentally, that is as many victories as predecessor Ange Postecoglou earned in his first eight games.

Frank's arrival has, as expected, added some much-needed structure and solidity to Spurs, though so far that has not come at the cost of attacking threat. The north London side have scored 10 Premier League goals already, second only to Liverpool.

But just like the Merseysiders, they have dramatically outperformed their expected goals total, scoring four goals more than would typically be expected basis on the quality of chances created.

Wolves in danger of sixth straight league defeat

Tuesday's 2-0 victory over Everton was Wolves' second win against top-flight opposition in the EFL Cup this term, but they are still yet to earn a point in the league and risk becoming just the fourth team to lose their opening six fixtures in a Premier League campaign.

In addition to this season's five defeats, they also ended last term poorly, meaning they have taken just one point from the last 27 available – in May's final-day draw against Brentford, then managed by Frank.

Wolves went in front after just eight minutes against Leeds last weekend, but were already 3-1 down by half-time, with boss Vitor Pereira admitting his side did not show "our level" during the opening 45 minutes.

Slow starts have been a recurring issue for Pereira's side, who have already conceded nine times before the break. That is at least four more than any other Premier League club and represents 75% of their total goals conceded.

They cannot afford to be playing catch-up in the second half on Saturday, as Tottenham are the only top-flight side yet to concede after the interval.

Melissa Edwards
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Wolves at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• There are no fresh injury concerns for Spurs with the same squad involved in the Carabao Cup victory over Doncaster Rovers on Wednesday available again.

• Pape Matar Sarr trained on Friday having missed the midweek clash through precaution while Randal Kolo Muani picked up a dead leg before Cup duties and is still unavailable.

• Dominic Solanke also remains out of contention for the clash against Wolves but the Spurs boss is "relatively positive he will be back quickly."

• When asked if the striker had suffered a setback, he replied: "When you've had that bit of pain, it's important to get it right, he wasn't [training] on the grass today, but he has been during the week."

• Radu Dragusin's recovery is also "progressing well" following the anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered at the start of the year, but it will be "some weeks" before he can return.

• Tottenham rejected takeover interest for a third time on Friday and Frank is confident that "the club is not for sale".

• He added: "The owners have been very transparent, very good in communicating, very clear - the club is not for sale. For me personally, I find it a stable environment coming into work every day and also I learned over a lot of years, that the only thing that helps me and helps the team is that I do everything I can to focus on the team."

• On facing Wolves Frank said: "We are facing a good Wolves side. Everyone is aware they haven't had their best start in terms of points. Their games have been very tight. This is a team the last five times we haven't been able to beat."

• "We need to come flying out, be ready for it, have the fans behind us - they need to back us in every second of the game. I am confident we will perform."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

The announcement by the Tottenham board is viewed by individuals close to the matter as largely a formality.

Market regulations require formal statements following speculation of such potential buyouts.

It has been claimed to BBC Sport that Brooklyn Earick was approached to issue the statement to the London Stock Exchange following a report in a national newspaper that claimed he was spearheading a takeover bid.

However, it was eventually left to Tottenham and Enic to publicly address the speculation, despite the fact Earick has been posting on social media about the reported takeover bid on Friday morning.

The seriousness of Earick's advances will become much clearer in the coming weeks. But what is clear is Spurs is viewed as a club that is purchasable.

Of course, the key catalyst of the recent flurry of interest from parties interested in taking over at Tottenham is the departure of long-serving executive chairman Daniel Levy.

Levy's exit has been taken by some as a clear sign that the Lewis family, who ultimately own the club, are preparing to sell.

However, the soundings - publicly and privately - are in complete contrast to the belief from some industry figures that the club is on the market.

The Lewis family are maintaining that Tottenham is simply not for sale. But that isn't preventing groups from testing the water.

Indeed, in addition to Earick's interest, a consortium involving Amanda Staveley has been among a number of parties not to have been dissuaded from pursuing a Spurs buyout despite the Lewis' family's stance.

If Earick is serious, then we may be about to find out how staunch the Lewis family are about leading Tottenham into the post-Levy era.

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Tottenham are keen to sign 30-year-old Portuguese defensive midfielder Joao Palhinha on a permanent basis following a successful start to his loan from Bayern Munich. (Talksport), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

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Bobbie Jackson
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

On Tuesday, Thomas Frank conceded he would need to rotate for the Carabao Cup as Tottenham, who made a winning start to their Champions League campaign last week and sit third in the Premier League, compete on four fronts this season.

Even without Richarlison, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Mohammed Kudus in the starting line-up, Spurs were a strong and cohesive unit.

The pace of Brennan Johnson and Wilson Odobert on either wing helped pen Doncaster back for large periods, while Xavi Simons was a constant threat with driving runs through the middle.

Rovers boss Grant McCann clearly urged his side to throw caution to the wind after the restart but Spurs, who have now kept five clean sheets this season, were far too disciplined defensively.

Tottenham have three games to play, including a trip to Norway to face Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League over the next 10 days, so it was no surprise to see them conserve energy levels and slow the tempo in the second half.

Frank also spoke about hoping to have the "privilege" to hand someone a debut and that moment arrived in the 87th minute when 16-year-old Luca Williams-Barnett got his first taste of senior football.

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank, speaking after the 3-0 win over Doncaster: "I'm happy with the win, happy with the clean sheet and very happy we're in the hat for the next round – that was the aim.

"I thought the first half was good. I thought we started well, created chances, up 2-0 and could have scored one or two goals more.

"The second half was more disjointed. We threw the ball away too easily, the pressure was not top and Doncaster did well. Always respect the opponent that made it difficult - they either dropped short or played long, but in the end, we did the job.

"We always want to stay on top in all games, but that's why it's so complicated. There is an opponent who also wants to play. It's never that easy. Overall, I'm happy with a convincing win.

"We needed to make enough changes, but not too many, and try to get them in the right positions. That's the challenge. We all know, as I say all the time, if we're going to play 60-plus games this season, we need to be really good at nailing that - making the right amount of changes per game."

Tottenham boss Thomas Frank says Harry Kane is "more than welcome" to return to the club, but does not expect the forward to leave Bayern Munich any time soon. (Sky Sports), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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The fourth-round fixtures of the EFL Cup have been confirmed:

• Arsenal v Brighton

• Grimsby Town v Brentford

• Swansea City v Manchester City

• Newcastle United v Tottenham

• Wrexham v Cardiff City

• Liverpool v Crystal Palace

• Wolves v Chelsea

• Wycombe v Fulham

Ties to be played in the week of 27 October