Tottenham manager Frank can take some encouragement from Paris Saint-Germain’s defeat

Frank’s formation moved away from the five-man defense that sparked so much anger against Arsenal, operating with a traditional back four protected by Rodrigo Bentancur and Archie Gray. He has paired Richarlison and Kolo Mwani up front to good effect.

It was also the line-up that suggested Frank may have one eye on Saturday night’s key game at home against Fulham, with Mohamed Kudus, Joao Palinha, Destiny Udoji, Wilson Odubert and Xavi Simons all ruled out.

However, Spurs were not the worst of it until they sank under the quality of Paris Saint-Germain, with Frank tirelessly opting to dispose of the ball using a man-to-man strategy which Luis Enrique’s side initially struggled to combat, getting up the pitch in a way that seemed alien to them at Arsenal.

Tottenham were pressing hard, looking to win the ball back with a real competitive advantage. This, at least, looked more like Thomas Frank’s team, despite the agonizing final result.

Frank was furious at his side’s lack of aggression at Arsenal, and looked visibly scowling when he pointed out they had only won 17 out of 53 duels and second-ball situations.

The commitment cannot be questioned here, but Spurs have been undone by the momentary lapses that always threaten eventual punishment against PSG.

“I’m very happy with the performance. It represented the team’s identity, courage and aggressiveness,” Frank said.

“There were a lot of positives, the two strikers scored three goals between them and the whole team put in a really good performance. The performance was to get something out of the game but then you need the margins to be with you, but we couldn’t concede some of the goals we scored.”

Tottenham seemed to take a well-deserved 1-0 lead in the second half, but they stopped playing after a free kick, allowing the brilliant Vitinha to equalize.

It happened again when Pape Matar Sarr, who had the score at 2-2, carelessly gave the ball away just before the hour mark, and the mistake ended up putting Fabian Ruiz putting PSG ahead for the first time.

Vitinha, who produced an excellent performance in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League win, was the decisive man with two stunning strikes to erase Spurs’ lead, one with his right foot and the other with his left foot.

Frank said: “Vitinha is the best midfielder in the world. He will be the next Ballon d’Or winner.”

PSG proved simply too good in the end, but Tottenham also went some way to answering justified criticism about their lack of threat, with Richarlison and Kolo Mwani scoring three goals between them.

It was a good night for Kolo Mwani, who saw his attempt to make an impact at Spurs hampered by a dead leg and a broken jaw, limiting him to just four appearances and 345 minutes of action before this match.

“What I will say is that Tottenham had a different attitude. Their application, their work rate, their pressing, they started higher up the pitch. There was a lot to be positive about,” former Tottenham and England goalkeeper Paul Robinson told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“Unlike at the weekend, Frank can put his finger on things that went wrong rather than scratching his head and thinking he didn’t recognize his team.”

The scene now turns to the vital home game against Fulham – where Frank must once again convince his critics that he has foundations to build on.