What did we learn from Thomas Frank's first game in charge of Tottenham Hotspur?

NBC Sports

4 hours ago

Tottenham Hotspur are off and running under Thomas Frank, who watched with glee as his new side brushed aside newly promoted Burnley to open the 2025-26 Premier League season on Saturday.
SPURS 3- BURNLEY — Video highlights & recap | Thomas Frank reaction
Frank was brought in to replace Ange Postecoglou this summer, just weeks after he delivered the club its first trophy in 17 years. It would have been an agonizing decision for chairman Daniel Levy to make, but the early returns have been positive as the club chases additional transfers to bolster the squad for the UEFA Champions League this season.
Mohammed Kudus hits the ground running
For the first time in a very long time, Spurs find themselves without a readily identifiable talisman — a current and future legend of the club around whom the side is built — and while that is certainly a scary proposition, that unknown factor should be a point of excitement for supporters as the club moves into a brand new era. That said, Mohammed Kudus is going to terrorize defenders this season, just as he did with a pair of assists on opening day. It was clear each of the last two seasons that Kudus was West Ham's biggest game-changer, but also that he was asked to do far too much in a(n overly defensive) team that often played with just one or two attackers at a time. At Spurs, under Frank, he looked freer than he ever has and a constant threat down the right wing. Both Richarlison and Dominic Solanke are solid targets to ping crosses at, which adds another dimension to his game, accounting for both assists against Burnley.
Three center backs vs the big boys, two against everyone else
Against PSG, arguably the best club team in the world right now, it was Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Kevin Danso in a back-three with Pedro Porro and Djed Spence providing all the width from endline to endline (attacking with two, plus whatever support came from two defensive midfielders and Pape Matar Sarr). Against Burnley, a newly promoted side, it was the same personnel (minus Danso) in a back-four, meaning Mohammed Kudus and Brennan Johnson would provide the width in attack and link up Richarlison in the final third (plus loads of support from midfield, in the form of Lucas Bergvall and Sarr). This tracks with everything we said after the PSG game. Two very distinctive looks created by swapping a center back for a winger, and injecting a bit of attacking flair (and legs) in the midfield.
Pape Matar Sarr is primed for a breakout season
Whether or not Spurs sign a no. 10 (Eberechi Eze) before the summer transfer window closes, Sarr is going to have a massive part to play this season. He'll likely be the go-to option in the above 'big boys' scenario, when Frank prioritizes defensive solidity and work rate over creativity and ingenuity. The 22-year-old already has 4,200 Premier League minutes under his belt and played just about every midfield role under the sun when Ange Postecoglou was in charge. And that makes Sarr the prototypical midfielder for Frank, who drills the tactical side of the game into his players like nobody's business but still asks them to get forward at any opportunity and make up the numbers in attack. Sarr was fantastic against PSG and was again a huge influence against Burnley, picking up an assist to start his 2025-26 campaign.