Thomas Frank sack latest: Spurs update delivered by David Ornstein

Robin Bairner

19 Jan 2026 13:26 GMT
5 min read

Thomas Frank, Tottenham, Spurs — © IMAGO

Thomas Frank’s time at Tottenham is not yet over, with David Ornstein providing the latest from the North London side.

Article continues under the video

Frank finds himself under fire after an exceptionally poor run of form that has left Spurs 14th in the Premier League.

The latest blow arrived at the weekend as they were defeated 2-1 at home by relegation-threatened West Ham.

Defeat saw Spurs’ fans turn on the manager, ramping up the pressure on the Dane, who only arrived at the club from Brentford in the summer.

Esteemed journalist David Ornstein says it’s not inevitable that he will go, but there is a tendency to believe that he is on borrowed time.

“It’s a critical situation for Thomas Frank at Tottenham Hotspur. As things stand, he remains in position and Tottenham play in the Champions League against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, so possibly he gets to take charge of that,” Ornstein told NBC.

“There is still a lot of goodwill behind Thomas Frank internally at Tottenham. They want him to succeed, but I think there is a great deal of realism too, and there’s an acceptance that that might not happen, which makes me think it’s a matter of when, not if, he will go. Of course, there’s a chance of a dramatic upturn, but I think that’s looking improbable, especially when the fans have turned against him and the hierarchy. And also, from what we hear, many players, understandably, are dissatisfied.”

🚨 Thomas Frank situation at #THFC covered yesterday @NBCSportsSoccer pic.twitter.com/Fi0ngbZOtl
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) January 19, 2026

Frank a victim of his circumstances?

Despite Frank’s struggles, Spurs believe he was simply the wrong person at the wrong time.

Ornstein explained: “The feeling at Tottenham is not that Thomas Frank is out of his depth, but perhaps he wasn’t the right fit for this job at this moment in time. He wouldn’t be the first. The results go back under Ange Postecoglou and previously, which brings me to the point of the issues running far deeper than just the head coach.

“If you look at the change with Daniel Levy being removed from his position after 25 years and the Lewis family taking more active control with a new-look board, new chief executive in Vinai Venkatesham, what appears at the top of the tree to be a lack of football expertise – although they do have the sporting director, Johan Lange – a lot of new faces, a lot of work has gone on behind the scenes, and that’s continuing to try to make Tottenham Hotspur a club that is fit for purpose to succeed in this era and into the future. So it may be that he succumbs, Thomas Frank, even though he’s not the problem at the heart of this.

“There have been so many changes on and off the pitch, questions about recruitment, about the salaries that are paid, about the medical department, and all of that needs to be lifted. I don’t think they plan to be in this position, so there are no contingencies ready to go, but those discussions will naturally be happening. Recruitment work for the January transfer window, which has already taken place with Conor Gallagher, continues. It’s not easy, but they will try and bolster the squad. It’s a precarious position, but it’s not over yet.”

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•Google Play

•App Store