The latest piece in Frank's puzzle, Palhinha could transform Spurs' midfield

Thomas Frank is continuing to change the make-up of Tottenham Hotspur's squad ahead of the UEFA Super Cup fixture against PSG on August 13th and the start of the new Premier League season just a few days later.

The 51-year-old Dane had the somewhat onerous task of stepping into Ange Postecoglou's shoes not long after the Australian had helped take Spurs to their first major title in 17 years.

Can Thomas Frank succeed where Postecoglou failed?

That Europa League final win over Manchester United will live long in the North Londoners' memory; however, Daniel Levy isn't one for sentiment and promptly fired Postecoglou for some below-par league results.

Given that he'd had to navigate a large portion of the season without some of his major players, the fact that Ange managed to deliver a trophy in his second season - as he'd promised - was nothing short of sensational.

If the decision to sack him wasn't contentious enough on that basis, employing Frank - who had never managed at what could be termed a 'big' club - was another that left many sceptical.

Frank transformed Brentford in the time he was there, it's true, but with respect, the Bees aren't Tottenham...

Déjà vu from Daniel Levy?

It's another risky strategy from Levy, and one which, in time, he could live to regret. What no one wants now is the usual two-to-three-year stint from a manager before the chairman gets itchy feet and the process repeats itself again ad infinitum.

For now, Levy's judgment and Frank's abilities in the dugout have to be trusted.

There may be a nagging doubt from the latter, too, that even if he gets off to a flyer, things could quickly turn sour.

After all, it was only two seasons ago that Tottenham fans were heartily singing Postecoglou's name from the terraces and speaking about how the football harked back to a bygone era and how success was just around the corner. Two years later, and it's back to square one.

At least Frank has started off on the right foot in terms of his transfers.

Kudus is a superb signing

Persuading Mohammed Kudus to move across the capital from West Ham was a brilliant move, and the Ghanaian will give the Spurs midfield and attack some real impetus in 2025/26.

Though he went off the boil at the Hammers in his second season, one only needs to look at some of the sensational strikes from his first 12 months there to understand what a quality player Spurs will be getting.

Tying down Kevin Danso and Mathys Tel is also a hugely important move for the club, the latter being persuaded that his long-term future is in North London rather than at Bayern Munich.

Another Bayern star who could soon be signing for the Lilywhites is former Fulham ace Joao Palhinha, who looks set to join Spurs on loan soon.

Palhinha has a point to prove

A solid midfielder with ample Premier League experience, the 30-year-old is likely to be champing at the bit to get some regular first-team action under his belt.

Under Vincent Kompany, the Portuguese hasn't featured as much as he would like, starting only seven of his 19 games last season, which totalled just 770 minutes - or the equivalent of just over eight and a half total matches in all competitions.

A player known for his tenacity and physicality in midfield, his out-of-this-world passing range is often overlooked.

Joao Palhinha's Premier League Stats (2023/24)Opta by StatsPerform

For instance, his 92.9% pass completion in 2024/25 was better than every regular member of the Spurs squad across the season - Cristian Romero's 89.5% was the closest anyone from the North Londoners came.

Relishing the challenge to get his foot in when needed too, it's no real surprise to find that Palhinha's 58.4% one-on-one duel success would also place him right in Spurs' top bracket alongside Danso (59.5%), Radu Dragusin (58.9%) and best-in-class Romero (61.6%).

Spurs' midfield needs to be more robust

That's certainly something Tottenham have lacked from their midfield of late, and that willingness to break up play is bound to have a marked and positive effect on the team moving forward.

Far too often, attacking teams were able to slice through the spine of a Spurs team which offered little in central midfield in terms of a robust response.

It's unlikely that there'll be a huge impact from Palhinha aerially, though, as he won 20 of his 31 aerial duels last season. What's more, Frank might like to see the player move forward and get amongst the goals more often.

Whilst at Fulham, Palhinha put his right foot to good use from long range and was a supplementary attacking presence at set pieces; however, no goals or assists in 24/25 have seen that side of his game curtailed.

With a permanent move potentially on the cards in a year's time if he can establish himself, what happens next is ultimately down to the player himself...