Jamie Carragher believes Tottenham fans are yet to “love” head coach Thomas Frank, but their relationship “will be a slow burner”.
Spurs host Chelsea on Saturday, live on Sky Sports, in Frank’s first home London derby in charge since taking over in the summer.
But despite taking Spurs up to third in the Premier League, the Dane is yet to completely win over Tottenham fans, and Sky Sports’ Carragher thinks it will take time for their love to grow for the ex-Brentford boss.
In his Daily Telegraph column, he said: “Managers who take over a side fourth from bottom of the Premier League and guide them into the top three within five months would normally be hailed as a messiah.
“Thomas Frank is yet to receive such adulation. After the messy break-up with Ange Postecoglou, it feels like Tottenham Hotspur supporters are still weighing up if Frank is ‘the one’ for them.”The Postecoglou era was like a whirlwind romance, wine and roses for the first few months as supporters felt they were embarking on a glorious long-term partnership.
“It all turned sour eventually, but there were enough fans clinging to happier memories – not least Postecoglou’s farewell gift of the Europa League trophy – to ensure there was no universal agreement that it was the right time to move on.
“Enter Frank, the antidote to Postecoglou and a manager whose football initially appears to be prompting feelings more of admiration than love.
“Spurs fans like what they are seeing with the team’s improved results. For the time being, Frank’s pragmatic approach is probably more tolerated than adored.
“Frank was appointed at an ideal moment because there is so much room for improvement. The downside is he is being underestimated because everyone knows Spurs were such underachievers. Since there was zero chance of Spurs being relegated, Frank literally could not have done any worse than Postecoglou in the Premier League. It was inevitable they would get far better very quickly.
“My instincts are that the relationship between Frank and his new fanbase will be a slow burner.”
Carragher feels an improvement in Spurs’ dire home form will help build the connection between Frank and the fans.
He said: “The immediate challenge for Frank is to improve performances and results in his own arena. Since 2024, Spurs’ home record is the worst of all the 17 ever-present Premier League teams. Even since Frank took over, Spurs’ home record ranks in the bottom four when it comes to points, goals and shots on target. Not quite edge-of-the-seat football yet.
“That is a problem when you are trying to win the hearts and minds of those who are still unsure if the team’s direction is one they can fully get on board with, especially those who were singing “we’ve got our Spurs back” under Postecoglou after losing patience with a succession of defensively-minded appointments.”
