FIVE Spurs players who could thrive under Thomas Frank

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Football writer Alex Keble selects five players who could benefit most from the arrival of Tottenham Hotspur's new head coach.

Thomas Frank has been appointed Tottenham Hotspur head coach and it’s fair to say he represents a major tactical departure from Ange Postecoglou.

Where Postecoglou was infamously ideological, Frank is renowned for being a flexible tactician who moves between progressive possession tactics and a more reactive or direct approach.

That means players who thrived under Postecoglou could struggle - and those who floundered could be given a new lease of life.

Here’s a look at five Spurs players who stand to benefit most from Frank’s arrival:

Gray is a player Frank and Brentford were rumoured to be interested in signing before he joined Spurs, and it’s easy to see why; Gray, pictured top left, has an intelligence, positional awareness, and technical ability in tight spaces that would have helped Brentford grow.

In the Championship, Brentford played possession-based progressive football with a high defensive line, only to drop into a more reactive system at Premier League level. However, it’s important to note that over the last year, Frank tried to move Brentford back the other way.

Their number of 10+ open-play passing sequences rose from 245 in 2023/24 to 325 in 2024/25, an increase of 33 per cent. Spurs, then, will often build carefully out from the back and through midfield.

Gray is very comfortable receiving the ball under pressure, playing cute one-twos, and moving the ball gracefully through the thirds.

He is a step-up from any midfielder Frank worked with at Brentford – and will quickly become one of the manager’s favourites.

More direct does not mean less progressive, and like Frank’s Brentford, Spurs will attack with gusto.

Frank usually instructs one of his two full-backs to sit in the back three and the other to attack aggressively, so much so that he converted winger Keane Lewis-Potter into a left-back at Brentford.

That’s good news for Udogie, pictured top right, who is likely to be turned back into a more conventional left-back after spending two years inverting into a No 8 position under Postecoglou.

Udogie's positioning under the old regime didn’t always work. He averaged 7.5 goals and assists in Serie A for Udinese, but contributed zero goals and just one assist in the Premier League last season.

He will enjoy overlapping or crossing from deep in 2025/26, simplifying a role that sometimes left Udogie crowded out in central areas under Postecoglou.

Having reportedly tried to bring Johnson to Brentford back in 2022, Frank will be pleased to link up with a fast, direct, and line-breaking winger reminiscent of the players who flourished at the GTech Community Stadium.

Broadly speaking, Frank’s Brentford organised their build-up play – whether through passing moves out from the back or longer passes over the top – to get wide wingers arriving in the final third at speed and in space.

Johnson contributed 14 Premier League goals and assists last season (one goal involvement every 155.5 minutes), but in a team more interested in fast transitions and counter-attacks, those numbers could increase.

Like Bryan Mbeumo at Brentford, Johnson will be given licence by Frank to run in straight lines down the right flank.

Most managers would want Van de Ven in their team for his outstanding defensive qualities and recovery speed, which will be essential despite Frank deploying a lower defensive line than Postecoglou.

What Frank will particularly appreciate, however, is Van de Ven’s technical ability. He is superb at playing raking long balls towards the forwards, as well as progressive line-splitting passes; these are qualities that Frank will use as he implements more direct football.

According to FBref, Van de Ven ranks in the 90th percentile for progressive passes per 90 (5.15) among centre-backs in Europe’s "Big Five" leagues. His long passes aren’t particularly high in number, at 7.1 per 90 last season, but that’s because of Postecoglou’s instructions.

By contrast, Frank will often want the ball played quickly to dribbling wingers like Johnson. In Van de Ven, he has the perfect centre-back to transition Spurs into a more direct team.

Van de Ven is also strong in the air, and maximising set-pieces will almost certainly be a prominent feature under Frank. Brentford ranked third in the Premier League last season for xG created from dead balls (16.71).

Frank is neither Postecoglou-like nor Nuno-like, but rather a hybrid manager with a flexibility and adaptability that will make Spurs less easy to read.

Consequently, he needs all-weather players just as capable of excelling when the plan involves quick counters as when it means hogging possession.

Only one player at Spurs has played well for the club despite the tactical setup; only one player who stood out under all of their last five permanent managers in Mauricio Pochettino, Nuno Espirito Santo, Antonio Conte, Jose Mourinho, and Postecoglou.

Son’s speed and dribbling quality could make him an ideal centre-forward for Frank too, combining the traits of Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa.

The Spurs captain only managed 16 goal involvements in the Premier League last season, down from 27 the year before, prompting rumours that he could be set to leave the club this summer.

But Frank’s track record of getting the best out of forwards and creating space for dribblers in the final third could revive Son’s fortunes.

Do that, and Spurs fans will instantly fall for their new manager.

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