Thomas Frank said Micky van de Ven and Jade Spence have apologized after the pair appeared to ignore him in the wake of Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League defeat to Chelsea on Saturday.
Joao Pedro’s 34th-minute goal gave Chelsea a thoroughly deserved win over a toothless Tottenham side in north London and Frank’s side were booed by a frustrated home crowd at the final whistle.
Spurs took just three shots in the game and scored 0.05 points, their lowest in a Premier League match since scoring began in the 2012-13 season.
As Frank entered the stadium for his customary round of appreciation, Van de Ven and Spence appeared to ignore their manager’s request to acknowledge the fans as they headed straight down the tunnel.
“Mickey and Jed came into my office yesterday unannounced and said they wanted to apologize for this situation,” Frank said at a news conference on Monday.
“They didn’t want it to look bad or disrespectful and all kinds of perceptions that you can get in the media world. So, that was not their intention at all towards me or the team or the club.”
“They were disappointed with the performance, the loss and the booing during the match.
“We all have a perception and it’s very good to have that strongly, ‘It’s because of whatever, because their mother wasn’t feeling well or they didn’t like the head coach or they were upset about the performance, or because they lost.’ We’re very good at that but none of us know.
“That will be my first question to them – how and why? Of course I’m happy, because I knew the question was coming today, and they are coming (indeed).”
“It means they care and I think that’s a very good thing. They care about the team and the club, and in this case I’m very happy about that.”
“It’s very good and we’ve talked well about a lot of things, but like everything we’ll keep it internal.
“As I told the players when I said before, it would be very unusual if you threw a player under the bus. We are all human but I will always protect them.”
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When asked if the matter with Van de Ven and Spence was now closed after their apologies, Frank added: “For me? Oh yes. 100 percent.”
Frank also confirmed that Lukas Bergvall will miss Tottenham’s Champions League match against Copenhagen on Tuesday and the Premier League clash with Manchester United at the weekend after the midfielder suffered concussion in the opening minutes of the defeat to Chelsea.
Frank said: “Lucas was out due to a concussion, which is clear to everyone who watched the match.” “Both Jade and Mo (Mohamed Quddus) have bruises and could be available for tomorrow.
