Thomas Frank has negotiated the first 96 days of his Tottenham rule with little fuss.
Through the minefield of contentious departures of his predecessor Ange Postecoglou, his captain Heung-min Son and his chairman Daniel Levy, the Dane has pitched more right than wrong.
He has spoken carefully, but more important than anything said has been unspoken message from the performances of his team.
Spurs are shaping up nicely as they approach 100 days under the new boss. Three wins out of four in the Premier League with only one goal conceded.
The tests are about to become tougher as the Champions League campaign starts.
The draw has been kind, but the added emotion involved, the drain of travel and demands on a head coach to navigate a way through, resting and rotating, trying to keep his key players fresh without losing the rhythm established and all the good habit adopted thus far.
Spurs are shaping up nicely under Thomas Frank – but tough tests await in Europe
Frank’s tactical plan rocked European champions PSG in the Super Cup final in August
On top of which, Frank is a novice in European competition. There were two failed Europa League campaigns while in charge of Brondby in his native Denmark, which did not extend beyond the qualifying rounds.
His tactical plan against Paris Saint-Germain in the Super Cup final, however, was enough to rock the European champions with a back-three and an aerial assault from set-pieces.
Although PSG were just back from their holidays after losing in the final of the Club World Cup, and still they fought back late in the game and took the trophy on penalties.
Even so, it felt like a tactical triumph for Frank in the early days of his tenure.
Indeed, the only real blemish has been a 1-0 defeat at home to Bournemouth in the Premier League, something for which he shouldered the blame.
‘It was a bad performance and definitely didn’t get better when I watched it back,’ said Frank. ‘I didn’t help the players well enough in that game. I took the wrong decision in terms of the planning.’
His self-deprecation is part of his charm. Those who know him well talk of him as a skilled communicator and manager of people and if there were concerns about his ability to handle bigger egos they are fading.
Frank dealt quickly and decisively with Yves Bissouma’s punctuality, dropping him from the squad for the Super Cup final for turning up late on more than one occasion.
Frank made Cristian Romero captain, a decision that is shaping into an excellent judgement call
Bissouma remains at the club but is injured and yet to appear for Frank. He is not part of the Champions League squad.
Another of Frank’s big decisions was to make Cristian Romero captain. That, too, is shaping into an excellent judgment call.
Romero has grown into his leadership roles, initially as a vice-captain for two years under Postecoglou and for the last month as captain.
He is a quiet presence around the club. Described, not as a chest-beater but gentle family man, who carries himself respectfully with the aura you might expect from a world and South American champion with Argentina. He is a very different presence when off the pitch.
His on-field discipline has improved. There were 24 yellow cards and three reds during his first two seasons in Spurs colours. And he was sent off on Tottenham’s last Champions League outing.
That was a shuddering wipe-out tackle on Theo Hernandez, a classic from the reckless Romero back catalogue on a night of simmering frustration against AC Milan in March 2023.
But almost two years have passed since his last dismissal, and he spoke on the eve of the Villarreal game about his bad reputation lingering despite his vastly improved disciplinary record.
‘They throw the book at me,’ smiled the Argentine. ‘They taught me to defend like this as a kid and I have it inside me, that love of playing this sport. When I step on the pitch, I don’t have friends. I don’t have anything. It’s just defending my shirt and my badge. It’s in my blood. I’ve got this far because of it so why would I change?’
Romero has embraced new responsibilities and extended his contract to 2029, ending for now at least a spiral of rumour and speculation that he would rather be playing his football elsewhere.
The 27-year-old centre-half cuts a contented figure. In the squad, he is closest to Uruguayan Rodrigo Bentancur and Pedro Porro, another Spanish speaker. And Kevin Danso, who has inherited Son’s role as the popular dressing room butterfly who can flit from one group to another and bring them all together.
Romero’s mood, though, is notable because in the past via grumblings in the Argentine media or veiled posts on social media, he has often seemed unimpressed by life at Tottenham, whether it is the medical department failing to get him fit quickly enough or the club’s refusal to grant him a private plane on his return from international duty.
He is not someone who will say the right things because he is expected to, so his decision to sign a new deal and his positive public messages provide Spurs fans with genuine hope that things have changed and that the future will be more successful under Frank and a new boardroom regime.
‘Everything I said is because I want there to be a structure of a club that can be at the top level, part of the big clubs,’ said Romero yesterday. ‘That’s why I was sometimes so angry before, but today I see a very, very organised club with a clear idea and a coach who is organising things and everyone is seeing that in a short space of time we are with him and that’s it.
‘Absolutely everyone inside is looking in the same direction and that is the important thing. We hope to continue like this.’
Romero’s form has been exceptional both as the rock at heart of a strong back four and as a threat from set-pieces.
Others to improve under Frank have been Pape Matar Sarr and Djed Spence, both little more than fringe players in previous seasons.
Sarr started only 22 Premier League games last season but brings to the team everything a head coach would desire as a selfless runner off the ball, forward to stretch opponents and back to win tackles.
He can adjust to do what he does in various tactical shapes in the midfield area Frank flexes depending on whether he wants to reinforce defensively or inject more creativity to help the attacking unit score goals.
Sarr does not have the poise and flair of others, but the new Spurs boss values his contributions and with no others in the squad with similar qualities it will be intriguing to see if he seeks to protect him going into this congested fixture period unleashed by the Champions League.
Frank’s judgment through his first 96 days has been impressive but it is about to become trickier.
