Thomas Frank has been sacked as Tottenham Hotspur head coach after eight months in charge.
Spurs made the decision to remove Frank after a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United on Tuesday night left the team 16th in the Premier League table, and only five points above the relegation zone.
Tottenham’s chief executive, Vinai Venkatesham, recommended the decision to the club’s owners after the match, which was accepted.
A Tottenham statement read: “The club has taken the decision to make a change in the men’s head coach position and Thomas Frank will leave today.
“Thomas was appointed in June 2025, and we have been determined to give him the time and support needed to build for the future together. However, results and performances have led the board to conclude that a change at this point in the season is necessary.
“Throughout his time at the club, Thomas has conducted himself with unwavering commitment, giving everything in his efforts to move the club forward. We would like to thank him for his contribution and wish him every success in the future.”
The Spurs hierarchy had been determined to give Frank time. Yet despite recognition of the mitigating factors, including a lengthy list of injuries and a lack of leadership in the squad, it was decided the team had not shown enough progress on the pitch.
Venkatesham and Tottenham’s non-executive chairman Peter Charrington were both in the stands to see the loss against Newcastle and Venkatesham spoke to the Lewis family, who are the club’s majority owners, after the game.
“I’m convinced I will be,” Frank said when asked after the Newcastle loss if he would still be in position for Tottenham’s next home game, against Arsenal on February 22. “I understand the question and I understand it’s easy to point on me but I also think it’s never only the head coach or the ownership or the directors or the players or the staff. It’s everyone.”
Asked if he could turn around Spurs’ fortunes, Frank said: “One thousand per cent sure. I am also 1,000 per cent sure that I never expected us to be in a situation like this with 11 or 12 injuries, but I know when you need to build something and need to get through things, you need to show unbelievable strong resilience.”
John Heitinga, who was brought in as an assistant coach on January 15, took first-team training on Tuesday morning and the Dutchman is among the options being considered to replace Frank, at least on a short-term basis.
Tottenham have no FA Cup fixture this weekend after they lost at home to Aston Villa in the third round in January, so it will be 11 days before their next game, at home to Arsenal in the Premier League. It means the club have a convenient window to name Frank’s replacement while the players will have the rest of this week off, as had been previously planned.
Tottenham finished fourth in the league phase of the Champions League under Frank, 52, and qualified directly for the round of 16. But their Premier League form has been dire, with the Newcastle defeat meaning Spurs have won only twice in their past 17 Premier League games.
They also crashed out early in both domestic cups, after losing to Newcastle in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup and Aston Villa in the third round of the FA Cup.
Only nine months ago Tottenham fans were celebrating winning the Europa League and the club’s first trophy in 17 years. But Frank struggled to win over the Spurs supporters, who were never convinced by the cautious style of play or that Frank was the right fit for Tottenham.
The fans sang “you’re getting sacked in the morning” towards the end of the loss to Newcastle and the atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has been toxic throughout the past few months. Fans also targeted their frustration at some of the players, like Guglielmo Vicario, earlier in the season but that anger has been directed specifically at Frank in recent weeks.
Tottenham considered Frank’s position after the defeat at home to West Ham United on January 17, which raised serious concerns about the team’s performances and Frank’s relationship with the fans. But the club were reluctant to bring further instability after a year of upheaval, and there was no obvious alternative to take over mid-season.
Some fans sang for the former manager Mauricio Pochettino early in the second half on Tuesday night, but the Argentinian is in charge of the US national team for the World Cup this summer. Ryan Mason, the former Tottenham midfielder, who came through the club’s academy, has been in charge at Tottenham on an interim basis before and is available after he was sacked by West Bromwich Albion last month, though both Mason’s previous spells brought mixed results.
Pochettino, who took Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final, had a strong bond with Tottenham fans
CHRIS BRUNSKILL/FANTASISTA/GETTY IMAGES
Roberto De Zerbi has just left Marseille and was on Tottenham’s shortlist when they were looking for a successor to Postecoglou last year, although the Italian was favoured by Fabio Paratici, who left his position as Spurs co-sporting director this month.
Heitinga has twice been in charge at Ajax, first as an interim manager for the second half of the 2022-23 season and then as permanent head coach last summer. But that second spell at Ajax lasted only five months, before he was sacked in November. Heitinga has also been an assistant at West Ham under David Moyes in 2023-24 and then at Liverpool under Arne Slot as they won the Premier League title last season.