Thomas Frank said Tottenham’s much-maligned owners are “super committed” to the club despite their struggle to make signings during the January transfer window.
Spurs will face one of the targets they missed out on this weekend when Manchester City arrive in north London with Ghana forward Antoine Semenyo in their ranks.
Frank revealed the former Bournemouth star had been one of Tottenham’s top targets before he decided to join City in a £65 million ($89 million) deal this month.
With the window shutting on Monday, Tottenham’s only major signing is England midfielder Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid, while last season’s leading scorer Brennan Johnson has been sold to Crystal Palace.
Languishing in 14th place in the Premier League, they have also lost James Maddison, Mohammed Kudus, Richarlison, Rodrigo Bentancur, Ben Davies and Lucas Bergvall to longer-term injuries.
But Frank rejected claims that majority owner ENIC, an investment group run by the Lewis family trust, is not committed enough to Tottenham.
“I can promise that the Lewis family is super committed to this project. They want to do everything and I would go against my rule, hopefully only once, that there’s no doubt it’s clear that the club wanted to sign Semenyo,” he said.
“They did everything. I think that’s a clear signal that the Lewis family is very committed.”
Frank has been under intense pressure in his first season after arriving from Brentford, though he led Tottenham into the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday.
Told that a protest against the owners is planned by fan group “Change for Tottenham” before and during the City game on Sunday, Frank said they should appreciate the difficulties of the transfer window.
Referring to the “Football Manager” video game, he said: “The fans just want the best for the club. Just like I want.
“The owners, the staff, the players, everyone wants the best for the club, but I also think it’s fair to say that the transfer window is not Football Manager, unfortunately.
“It would be a lot easier, but also a little bit more boring. It is very difficult the transfer market. It’s an art, it’s craftsmanship.”
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