Spurs<\/a> have so many players with high ceilings that we haven\u2019t seen them get anywhere near since the start of 2024. Players like Randal Kolo Muani and Mathys Tel are yet to find their feet, but everyone knows how good they can be. And then there\u2019s Archie Gray, who hasn\u2019t exactly been misused but has been played here, there and everywhere. That benefits some aspects of his development, but the lack of continuity can be harmful.<\/p>\nThomas Frank hasn\u2019t had to navigate an injury crisis like Ange Postecoglou did last season (mainly because he doesn\u2019t run his players into the ground), meaning Gray has actually been used in his natural position of central midfield in the Premier League, less so in Europe.<\/p>\n
His potential is sky-high and he can hopefully realise it as a defensive midfielder next to Joao Palhinha. They complement each other perfectly. Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur are two good players, but they cannot play together. It\u2019s far too robust and lacks any sort of creativity. Gray can be the tidy, deep-lying playmaker while his partner runs around like a very effective destroyer.<\/p>\n
Lucas Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr are similar to Gray in that respect, but two starts in a row for the latter show who Frank prefers right now. And right now, Spurs look as comfortable and inventive as they have under the Brentford legend. It\u2019s hardly a surprise when you stop playing two ball-winning midfielders together.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re not saying the handbrake is off, but the team looks freer and more expressive, which plays directly to Simons\u2019 strengths.<\/p>\n
Simons is extraordinary on the ball, but he loves the other side of the game too. He isn\u2019t shy in 50\/50s, as his disgustingly filthy kit told us, and that sort of thing will endear you to the fans more than a nutmeg or a won penalty.<\/p>\n
He did the latter on Tuesday night at home to Slavia Prague in the Champions League, as Spurs backed up one solid performance and result against Brentford with another of similar ilk.<\/p>\n
Under Postecoglou, it was pure chaos: no defensive structure and a heavy emphasis on attacking without actually looking very good in attack. Under Frank, maybe they initially went too far the other way, but the Dane looks like he\u2019s striking a balance. They will have tougher tests than Slavia and Brentford at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but Spurs\u2019 home record has been so poor this season that these wins hold more significance than they probably should.<\/p>\n
Playing to the strengths of players like Simons and Mohammed Kudus is crucial to finding that balance, because you need to get the best out of your best players, and if your best players are performing, you\u2019ve always got a chance.<\/p>\n
Frank has been tweaking and testing all season, but there\u2019s no doubt Spurs look so much better with Kudus and Simons on the pitch. If they\u2019re both fit, they have to start. Have to.<\/p>\n
Simons hasn\u2019t found it easy to settle in at Spurs, and there are caveats and coincidences at play, but the raw data is clear: Spurs have won eight games in all competitions since Simons signed, and he\u2019s started all eight of them.<\/p>\n
Simons won a penalty that he converted, and Kudus scored one of his own to help Spurs win 3-0 on Tuesday, with Slavia defender David Zima scoring Spurs\u2019 100th Champions League goal to make it 1-0.<\/p>\n
They will both be crucial to any success Spurs and Frank enjoy this season. And, believe it or not, so might Richarlison.<\/p>\n
He has 17 goals in his last 24 Premier League starts, which may span two years, but still. He\u2019s been very good in a fairly dysfunctional team still finding its feet under a new head coach. It\u2019s a resurgence not many saw coming, but one very welcome for Spurs with Dominic Solanke crocked.<\/p>\n
Richarlison has pretty notable flaws, but so do most Spurs players. Simons isn\u2019t perfect either, but he is clearly a difference-maker and is beginning to show why he cost over \u00a355million. Frank\u2019s side look so much better going forward when he\u2019s on the pitch, and completely clueless when he\u2019s not. His influence is impossible to ignore now.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s becoming undroppable and just as crucial as players like Cristian Romero. So much goes through him, and that\u2019s the way it should be.<\/p>\n
The confidence is growing at the same time as Spurs\u2019 performances are improving. Bigger tests await, but the rhythm is there and, in the fickle football world, we\u2019re now wondering what this team is capable of as their summer signings settle \u2013 rather than whether Frank will still be in a job at Christmas. And maybe Simons > Eze after all.<\/p>\n
READ NEXT:\u00a0Premier League player power rankings: Fernandes up to third, Foden in top 10, no Salah or Van Dijk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Spurs are starting to look like a team cohesive and confident in attack, and Xavi Simons\u2019 improved form…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":308205,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[3709,25822,218,348,101,919,56,54,55,3919],"class_list":{"0":"post-308204","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-f365-features","9":"tag-f365-says","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-home-page","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-tottenham-hotspur","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-unitedkingdom","17":"tag-xavi-simons"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=308204"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308204\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/308205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=308204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=308204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}