It looked to be a frustrating summer for Tottenham Hotspur as the club sought to equip its new head coach, Thomas Frank, with the right tools. Clearly, the desire was to bring in a creative midfielder to fuel the attack. Losing James Maddison in preseason only furthered this most pressing of needs.
First up was Morgan Gibbs-White, but after a series of hefty offers, secret release clause reveals, lawsuits, and then a new contract out of nowhere for the attacking midfielder, Spurs missed out. Next up was Eberechi Eze, who’d seemingly lost the focus of Arsenal. That was until Kai Havertz sustained another injury.
In swooped Arsenal to lure the boyhood Gunners fan to the Emirates Stadium, leaving Spurs in the cold once more. Unlike in seasons past, however, Spurs didn’t let these disappointments define their window. The front office got to work to enact Frank’s will and funnelled him the tools to not only start well, but to truly bolster his squad.
A Promising Start to the 2025/26 Season
Right off the bat, Tottenham Hotspur aren’t expected to win or even challenge for the title in 2025/26. However, a top-four spot is clearly what the board craves. After the briefest of beginnings to the new campaign, with the September internationals popping up extra early this season, Spurs have cemented a place as top-four dark horses.
According to the outright odds of the betting markets, Spurs are at 5/1 to secure a top-four place. As it stands, Newcastle United, Manchester United – somehow – Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal, and Liverpool are ahead. It’s a pretty common response from the oddsmakers and predictors to not shift the lines too early.
Three games are a rather small sample to go off of for predicting a 38-game season. If it was influential, then it seems unlikely that either Newcastle or Manchester United would be getting shorter odds than Spurs for the top four. If you include the UEFA Super Cup, Frank’s enjoyed three strong performances and just one dud to date.
Against Paris Saint-Germain at Stadio Friuli in Italy, Spurs’ prime centre back pairing put them 2-0 up before the 50-minute mark. Two incredibly impactful subs showcasing the depth of the European champions put away goals in the 85th and 93rd minute to force penalties. Still, it showed how well Frank can strategise the right formula.
Then, Spurs opened the season by showing Burnley just how much of a step-up it is to the top division. New signing Mohammed Kudus was exemplary on the right side, backed up by Spurs’ staple Senegalese centre-mid. The defence held firm and Richarlison was able to thrive, scoring two of the goals in the 3-0 win.
Next came an unwelcome visit to a Manchester City looking to quickly establish themselves as frontrunners once more. They did not. Instead, Frank drilled his players to interrupt any sense of rhythm City could try to get going, with João Palhinha being pivotal to the 2-0 win at the Etihad Stadium.
Finally, Spurs entered the break with a dud. Bournemouth suddenly found themselves 1-0 up after about five minutes. From there, Andoni Iraola’s dynamic defensive system stopped Spurs from creating many opportunities. Guglielmo Vicario had a good game, as did Cristian Romero, but the attack couldn’t solve the Cherries defence.
Would Spurs be Three-for-Three with Eze?
It’s very possible that having a talent like Eze in attacking midfield would have allowed Spurs to unpick the Bournemouth defence and find a way to open up the game a bit more. Equally, Gibbs-White could have provided a similar service were he playing in white now.
Even with those misses, this Spurs team has improved greatly, and that’s thanks to Frank’s insistence on the board bolstering the starting XI rather than just the squad or looking to the future. Kudus is a superb creative talent and attacking driving force, while Palhinha offers the midfield anchor Frank’s teams often rely on.
The late and cost-effective addition of Randal Kolo Muani will certainly provide competition to all spots along the frontline. Initially, it’d look like the Frenchman is a solid just-in-case addition to cover Dominic Solanke’s dodgy ankle and Richarlison’s regular bout of injuries. Plus, in the end, Frank did get his creative attacking midfielder.
This is a strong Spurs squad backed up by a versatile and strategic head coach. Some major injuries have hit early, but the team has worked well to bring in options that don’t just fill in, but could very well replace starting XI players.
