There was an extraordinary moment just before kick-off here when Thomas Frank strode 20 yards on to the pitch and applauded all four corners of the stadium. The Tottenham head coach was applauded back by the Brentford fans because he will always be a hero to them. His work over a near seven-year period as their manager has seen to that.
But what of the followers in his new gig? It is safe to say the jury remains out after this driest of January performances, one that had the supporters in the away enclosure adapting a barb they have historically reserved for their rivals, Arsenal. “Boring, boring Tottenham,” they chorused in the 85th minute.
Frank’s problem over the first half of this Premier League season has the dearth of creativity in too many games and it was the case again here. In the final analysis, what could Spurs point to? A first-half header from Archie Gray and a weak Richarlison shot at the very end which was never going to trouble the scorers.
Brentford shaded it. They were the more forceful, proactive team – certainly in the second half, this point feeling like a bad one, and the boos from the Spurs fans on the final whistle told their own story. Again.
Frank will always cherish what he achieved at Brentford – the promotion from the Championship; the manner in which he established the club in mid-table Premier League respectability; how his team repeatedly outperformed their budgets. He could be glimpsed on one of the big-screen montages prior to kick-off and he got the warm welcome back from the home crowd which had been expected.
No visiting manager will be more aware of what this Brentford team can do and Frank’s mission was complicated by his being without eight players for various reasons – nine, if you included Brennan Johnson, who was left out of the squad as he closed in on a £35m move to Crystal Palace. The Spurs support chanted the song that they have for him.
Kevin Schade had the ball in the net for Brentford after a sixth-minute corner only to be flagged for offside and Keith Andrews’ team pressed with intent at the outset. They tried to ask questions of Spurs with their movement in midfield, where Yehor Yarmoliuk sought to find the spaces and Jordan Henderson, who was restored to the starting XI, was a snapshot in trademark industry.
The travelling Spurs fans had to wonder where the creativity might come from; the X factor. Frank felt his selection problems bite most strongly in the central midfield positions, Lucas Bergvall the latest absentee with what the club believe is a minor injury. The manager does not seem to like João Palhinha and Rodrigo Bentancur as a pairing in front of the back four, yet he had no option but to use it. Gray, the only other available central midfielder, was asked to play as the No 10.
It was thin gruel during a forgettable first half for both teams. Brentford were frustrated before the break when Igor Thiago stretched for a cross from Henderson only to take the ball away from Keane Lewis-Potter who was better placed behind him.
Spurs’ only real flicker came just after the half-hour when Richarlison returned a deep Palhinha cross that Kristoffer Ajer could not clear for Gray in the middle. It was a chance, especially in the context of the first 45 minutes. Gray’s header hit Nathan Collins and Richarlison volleyed the rebound past the far post. Was it a cross or a shot? It was probably neither.
Brentford had begun the day in ninth, one point and four places better off than Spurs – a scenario they would surely have signed for over the summer after Frank’s departure together with that of a clutch of key players. It is a testament to Andrews’ work and, moreover, the structures put in place at the club. Those in which Frank had thrived for so long.
Could Brentford strike the decisive blow here? It felt as if it would come down to a moment and they pushed for it after the restart. Lewis-Potter swiped at a low cross when well-placed – the connection was not there – while Vitaly Janelt worked Guglielmo Vicario with a header from Henderson’s cross. In between times, Cristian Romero got away with a misjudged last-man tackle on Thiago. The Spurs captain missed the ball and then seemed to handle while on the ground. He also missed Thiago and yet he surely served to get in his way.
When the Spurs support chanted again for Johnson in the 70th minute, it was easy to get the wistful vibes. Where was the runner in this team to get in behind, to stretch the opposition? It was a tough watch for them; too many unconvincing touches from their players; not enough cohesion or attacking thrust. It was just an overall aimlessness.
Gray shouted in vain for a penalty on 57 minutes after a risky lunge from Schade but Spurs never looked like scoring and their fans knew it. The consolation was that it was not worse. Which it would have been had Thiago not lifted high after good work by Michael Kayode in the 69th minute.