Spurs head to far north in search of creativity

Frank says lack of chances is down to new front four with team preparing to take on Bodø/Glimt again tonight

- Jonathan Wilson

No game is an island; every game is inevitably coloured by what has gone before. It is not quite five months since Tottenham last came north of the Arctic Circle and, for all that Thomas Frank insisted this is a “new situation”, that previous meeting with Bodø/Glimt in the semifinal of the Europa League can not but colour this one in the league phase of the Champions League.

There was an odd echo, too, in the buildup. Back then, the Glimt fullback Fredrik Sjøvold was dismissive of Tottenham's pressing, which clearly riled Ange Postecoglou.

Frank is not somebody who gets riled, but he seemed taken aback by a (noncritical) comment from the Bodø goalkeeper Nikita Haikin expressing surprise at how much focus Spurs place on long throws and set-plays. A third of goals come from set-plays, Frank pointed out; why would Spurs not try to use them? “Set pieces are extremely important.”

Creativity, though, has been a problem for Tottenham as their flying start has yielded to a slightly more difficult phase. They lie fourth in the table, but are ninth in the Premier League for chance creation.