It was the last thing Thomas Frank needed.
As the under-fire Tottenham manager walked around Vitality Stadium sipping an espresso ahead of his struggling team’s Premier League match at Bournemouth on Wednesday, little did he know the drink was inside a cup emblazoned with Arsenal branding.
Yes, that’s Arsenal — Tottenham’s fierce rival and the last team to visit Bournemouth’s ground.
“I definitely didn’t notice it,” Frank said. “It’s fair to say we’re not winning every single football match so it would be absolutely, completely stupid of me to take a cup with Arsenal’s (emblem on).”
However silly it is — and Frank expressed his sadness that such an incident was being highlighted — it was a big PR fumble and might prove to be an image that defines a tenure that is plunging into turmoil.
Tottenham conceded a stoppage-time goal to lose at Bournemouth 3-2 and slip to 14th place in the 20-team league. Spurs have won just two of its last 12 league games and the pressure is mounting on Frank and his players, who don’t seem to be handling the situation well.
After the game, Micky van de Ven was one of the players who walked over to Tottenham’s disgruntled travelling fans and was seen gesturing toward and remonstrating with one of them in an angry exchange.
Later, Cristian Romero — Van de Ven’s center-back partner — posted on Instagram a long message in which he apologized to fans for Tottenham’s results. A tough-tackling defender, the Argentina international also went in hard on unspecified people at the club.
“At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don’t — as has been happening for several years now,” Romero wrote. “They only show up when things are going well.
“We’ll stay here,” he added, “working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all together, is part of football.”
Frank said he and and co-sporting director Johan Lange spoke to Romero on Thursday.
“When you’re a young leader sometimes you make a mistake,” Frank said. “Of course it’s good to keep it internally.”
Tottenham fans are increasingly unhappy with the pragmatic style of play under Frank, who arrived in the offseason as the replacement for the fired Ange Postecoglou after leaving fellow Premier League team Brentford.
Postecoglou led Tottenham to the Europa League title — and therefore a return to the Champions League — but only a 17th-place finish in the league, which ultimately cost him his job.
It is the highest-profile role taken on by 52-year-old Frank in a coaching career that includes positions with Denmark's national youth teams and at Brøndby. At Brentford, he was able to work largely away from the limelight and he gained praise and respect for the job he did, keeping the team in the Premier League and causing problems for the biggest clubs in England with his tactical acumen.
The glare at Spurs is much harsher, however.
“In a storm, some are building fences and hiding behind it, others are building windmills and getting stronger and getting more energy and learning from it,” Frank said Thursday.
“I see myself as above average intelligence so I am very aware (that fans want attacking football). My teams have always produced chances and scored goals and this team will do the same. I think it is fair to say we are lacking some of the tough, free-flowing offensive players that we had last season and that is part of the challenge.”
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Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank reacts on the touchline during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland in London, Sunday Jan. 4, 2026. (John Walton/PA via AP)
Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank holds a coffee cup bearing the Arsenal logo as he walks on the pitch before the English Premier League soccer match between Bournemouth and Tottenham Hotspur in Bournemouth, England, Wednesday Jan. 7, 2026. (Andrew Matthews/PA via AP)
