re: Tottenham Hotspur 2025/26 Season Long Thread: Please Save Us De Zerbi

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[The Times] Thomas Frank on the brink at Spurs after latest debacle. "Tottenham weighing up a change after embarrassing defeat by West Ham means head coach has overseen a torrid run of one win in eight games."

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Tottenham Hotspur supporters sang “you’re getting sacked in the morning” at the club’s head coach Thomas Frank after his team fell to a dismal stoppage-time defeat to relegation-threatened West Ham United. West Ham arrived at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium without a win in the league since November 8, but secured a vital three points over their London rivals thanks to substitute Callum Wilson. Tottenham’s Lewis family owners and chief executive Vinai Venkatesham have desperately tried to support Frank, but any remaining backing from the Spurs stands for the Dane appears to have evaporated. Frank looked vacantly in front of him as the home fans turned on him en masse and he left the pitch at full time to a barrage of boos and abuse from Tottenham supporters. This cannot be viewed as anything other than a crisis for Frank, who admitted he is now trying to turn around a “supertanker”. “I’ve probably had better times, it’s probably not the best time of course,” Frank said. “But I understand, I’m the man in charge. So the blame will go to me. That’s fair, no problem in that sense. As long as they are backing the players, doing everything they can, to support them and drive them forward, that’s what we do, and we will keep going forward. “It’s a supertanker that we’re turning in the right direction and there are a lot of good signs behind the scenes and also in some of the performances. But, of course, when you lose last-minute to one of your rivals, it is very emotional football and there will be noise. That noise we need to keep out there [away] and get our heads down and keep working, keep doing the right thing.” Some had labelled this game “El Sackico”, but West Ham head coach Nuno Espírito Santo will live to fight another day and his team must still believe they can produce a great escape to fight off relegation. Nuno threw Wilson on in the first minute of stoppage time and just two minutes later the striker bundled the ball in from a corner that Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario had failed to deal with. Vicario raced after referee Jarred Gillett to protest he had been blocked off, but his argument was just as pathetic as his goalkeeping. There was a brief VAR check for offside, during which the Spurs fans sang “you’re getting sacked in the morning” at Frank and the goal was quickly cleared. Wilson had been expected to leave West Ham this month, but proved he is still a valuable asset. Nuno said: “We need all the options. We are in the situation that all the options we have are important. We are trying to make the squad stronger for the final games of the season. We are still in the fight. What we have to do is believe. What this win gives us is smiles, good feeling and a good atmosphere. It was an important win. We have to be brave, there is no other choice.” Tottenham’s new signing Conor Gallagher might have wondered what he has walked into. He had to be treated for a clash of heads after just 17 seconds of his debut and the home players all left the pitch looking dazed and confused. Frank argued that his side were hard done by, given their second-half response in which Cristian Romero headed an equaliser, but West Ham could have put the game to bed in a first half in which they dominated. Crysencio Summerville gave West Ham a deserved lead with a 15th-minute shot that deflected into the net off Micky van de Ven in a first half in which the visitors dominated. Summerville ran the Spurs defence ragged, while Mateus Fernandes ran the midfield and Jarrod Bowen worked tirelessly. Striker Taty Castellanos should have doubled West Ham’s advantage, but headed wide at the back post and Vicario had to make a good save to prevent a Konstantinos Mavropanos header finding the net. Bowen had a goal ruled out for offside. It summed up how desperate Frank and Spurs were at the break that he threw on Yves Bissouma. It was Bissouma’s first appearance of the season for the home side, having been frozen out since being dropped for the Uefa Super Cup for being late. Spurs fans will wonder what the question is if Bissouma is the answer and they booed when Frank decided to take off Mathys Tel later in the second half in order to get striker Dominic Solanke on the pitch. “I need to take decisions,” Frank said. “So I had to take one offensive player off. There was nothing wrong with Mathys’s performance. It was good to see Bissouma back. He has been injured for a long time and then he was in the Africa Cup of Nations and came on the pitch and did well.” A few minutes after Solanke’s introduction, Spurs managed to level when captain Romero headed in Pedro Porro’s cross and the right-back responded to the celebrating home fans by cupping an ear. It was impossible to know whether he was encouraging the noise or mocking the change of mood. West Ham survived a VAR check for a penalty against Oliver Scarles after the ball looked to have brushed his hand, but there was an even greater sting in the tail to come for Frank as Wilson grabbed the winner.

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