Ben Davies has revealed what he thought when Tottenham Hotspur appointed Thomas Frank as their head coach and has shed light on what the Dane and the coaching staff have worked on in pre-season so far.
It is clear already from Tottenham Hotspur’s performances in pre-season that Frank has put his imprint on this Spurs side.
The Lilywhites have much better organised defensively than they were under Ange Postecoglou, with clean sheets evidently being a priority for the Dane.
The noises coming from the Tottenham dressing room indicate that Frank has managed to win over the Spurs players, but the proof will be in the pudding once the season starts.
Ben Davies reveals his reaction when Thomas Frank was appointed at Tottenham
Davies is no stranger to managerial changes at Tottenham, having played under Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo, Antonio Conte and Ange Postecoglou.
The Welshman admitted that he was happy when Frank was appointed, revealing that he always thought Brentford were set up very intelligently.
When asked if this summer feels different at Spurs, with a new manager arriving and with the club going into the campaign as Europa League champions, the defender told Football.London: “In one aspect yes, in other aspects no. It’s new faces, new environment and new ideas that are coming in. It’s always exciting when that does happen because, as I said, you learn new things.
“Even when you’ve been around the game as long as I have, you see things from a different perspective. It’s always good to learn from the new guys coming in, especially Thomas, who had an amazing time at Brentford, and I think one of the things you saw from that team was how intelligent they were. How they properly fought against the odds at times to succeed. I’m looking forward to working and learning under him.”
When asked about needing to adapt to yet another new manager’s ideas, Ben Davies said: “It’s part and parcel of being a footballer in this day and age. You are going to have a lot of managers, and it’s just the transient nature of how the game has become. Having someone like Pochettino, like I did for five years, is not really happening at many clubs anymore.
“That’s not to say that it’s not strange when it happens, and as players, you feel partially responsible for that, but it’s something you have to get used to. With a new manager, it’s a chance to learn more and develop as a player.”
Davies reveals what Frank’s message has been this summer
Thomas Frank has said that he wants Tottenham to have more balance than they did last season, with the 51-year-old emphasising the need for the side to be good in all phases of the game.
Davies has now explained that the Danish coach has been focused on the small tactical details which Spurs can add to improve both defensively and offensively.
When asked about the ideas that Frank has brought to Tottenham, the Wales internaitonal responded: “When we all came in we had a sit down meeting and it was basically about what was expected this year and where he thinks we can improve as a team and where the low-hanging fruit is for us to be better in the league than last year.
“We have been working on that in pre-season, some different tactical aspects, a bit more structure in the team. I think hopefully we will see the results of that pretty quickly. The thing he said to us, which is more important than anything, is that we are in four big competitions this year, and we have proven we can be up there with anyone. We have to have a go in each and every one of them.
“Early doors, it is just about trying to get everyone to buy into the ideas. There has not been anything which is too in-depth so far. There are little nuggets you can pick up here and there. From working with these guys, you can see the value that they put on certain aspects of the game.
“How, as I mentioned before, there is low-hanging fruit where you can pick up goals which turn into wins which can turn into a lot of points come the end of the season for minimal effort if you are in the right headspace for it. Without going into too many details of what that is, I feel like I have picked up a few things.”
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