Thomas Frank’s managerial career at Tottenham Hotspur is over after just eight months.

Tuesday night’s 2-1 home loss to Newcastle United, which had been winless in five games, was the last straw for the team. Tottenham are still winless in this year’s Premier League.

Spurs were booed at half-time and full-time by their own supporters in their defeat to the Magpies, who chanted “sacked in the morning” and “we want Frank off” at the manager.

Frank replaced the popular Angie Postkoglu this summer after seven successful years at Brentford. Why didn’t he succeed at Spurs?

Fans reject style of play

Tottenham’s style of play has become a source of controversy under Frank. The high-octane attacking ethos of his predecessor Postkoglu may have been flawed, but it at least gave supporters something to root for. “Angeball” is fun.

That’s not the case with Frank’s approach.

The Dane insists his ultimate goal is for Spurs to play free-flowing football, but fans will see little evidence of it on the pitch.

Their ball possession, passing order and playmaking numbers all plummeted. Under Frank, Spurs seemed more content to sit back and absorb the pressure rather than pressuring their opponents and forcing a high turnover rate. It all feels reactive rather than proactive.

Stylistically, Tottenham’s style is similar to Frank’s Brentford in that he focuses more on long balls and aerial passes. He prioritized defensive solidity with little success and their offense suffered. In losses to rivals Chelsea and Arsenal in November, Tottenham’s expected goals total was just 0.17.

Frank successfully transformed their set-piece threat. Spurs have already scored more dead-ball goals than they did all of last season. But given the club’s attacking heritage, fans will find it difficult to accept the apparent lack of intent in open play.

Frank points out the usability issue, and has a point. But the lack of entry points was worrying, with Frank often preferring the skilled midfield combination of Joao Palinha and Rodrigo Bentancur, much to the frustration of the club’s fans.

Damn, he leaves Spurs having made fewer through balls than any other Premier League side this season.

family discomfort

Things started well for Frank at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

His first Premier League game in charge came in a 3-0 win over Burnley in August, following an impressive performance against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup. It provided early encouragement for the new head coach to lead.

Six months on, however, Spurs have recorded another Premier League win in 13 games in front of their own fans. Their home record is the third-worst in the conference. Frank is trying to avoid using the “R” word, but that’s a downgrade.

Their struggles at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where fans publicly attacked Frank on multiple occasions, prevented him from connecting with those in the stands and ultimately paved the way for his departure.

Relative to away performance, Tottenham’s home performance is actually the worst in the Premier League, with Spurs conceding an average of 0.69 fewer points per game when playing in front of fans than away from home.

Injury issues

Frank was not helped by some factors beyond his control. Tottenham have been plagued by injuries, especially on the offensive end.

Frank was unable to visit James Madison or Dejan Kulusevski once during his brief tenure. Dominic Solanke has also been absent for much of the campaign. When the striker finally returned to action, Spurs lost Richarlison and Mohamed Kudus.

Wilson Odobert became the latest player to fall after being forced to withdraw from Tuesday’s defeat to Newcastle.

Their current list of absences reaches double figures and includes, in addition to the names already mentioned, the suspended Cristian Romero and the injured Pedro Polo, Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall, Jed Spence, Kevin Danso and Ben Davies.

The numbers are staggering. Tottenham have had the third-highest number of injuries in the Premier League this season, with 43 in total, behind only Chelsea and Arsenal.

However, they are the highest in terms of lost days. Tottenham players have missed a total of 1,302 days this season. All this adds up to Frank’s task becoming even more difficult.

That Arsenal Cup

Does being photographed holding the Arsenal trophy have any bearing on whether Frank loses his job? No, this is a simple mistake. But that hasn’t helped him build a relationship with Spurs fans.

The Spurs boss drank from a cup emblazoned with the badge of his biggest rival while his team struggled and their biggest rival topped the league, an embarrassing incident at a sensitive moment. This, coupled with Tottenham’s eventual loss against Bournemouth, created an unnecessary obstacle in Frank’s climb.

Of course, this was an unfortunate accident. But it adds to the noise surrounding his position and gives his critics more ammunition.

Romero’s Discipline

When your players know they’re going to be in your starting lineup, it can sometimes cause more harm than good. For Frank, that sums up the story of Tottenham Hotspur captain Romero.

The Argentinian often creates great moments. Game-saving and sometimes job-saving moments. A crucial brace against Newcastle and an equalizer against Burnley made him indispensable at both ends of the pitch.

But every time Frank wanted to thank him, he got a headache. Romero speaks his mind from his heart, which often gets the Dane into trouble.

Frank has spoken out in support of his captain on several occasions, despite questions over his future and whether he has the right mentality to wear the armband. Any issues are handled internally. What is indisputable is that Frank protected the players.

How was he rewarded? In his final weeks in charge, he had to respond to comments made by Romero on social media in which he described Tottenham’s “stretched” form due to injuries as disgraceful. He defended the player again. refused to strip him of his captaincy.

A few days later, he was recklessly sent off against Manchester United, preventing him from completing the remainder of Frank’s tenure. A leader fails to stand with his teammates. Instead, let them fight without him.

Perhaps Romero’s words and actions reflect the feelings of the Spurs players as a whole. In that case, it would be difficult for Frank to turn the situation around. But having your primary leadership perspective cause you more harm than good is a problem every manager would rather avoid.