WHAT REALLY HAPPENED DURING DOMINIC SOLANKE’S SECRET MINOR ANKLE OPERATION?
Thomas Frank confirms Dominic Solanke won't face Bournemouth. With Kudus injured and Johnson gone, Spurs face a major striker crisis.
Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank says Dominic Solanke won’t be ready for Wednesday’s game at Bournemouth. Solanke still needs time to get back to his best.
The last time Solanke played for Spurs was August 23, away at Manchester City. That ankle injury has really held him back—he’s only managed three appearances so far this season.
He had a minor operation on October 1, and Tottenham has taken it slow with his recovery. Solanke finally got back to training last week, but Frank made it clear the 28-year-old won’t be facing his old club just yet.
“Nope, he will not, but positive going forward,” Frank said when someone asked if Solanke would make the trip.
Frank saw some good things from Solanke in training—composed on the ball, making sharp decisions, nice touches. But when things got a bit more intense, Solanke looked rusty. That’s not a shock, though. The guy’s been out for over six months. Of course, he needs time.
Frank added, even if Solanke’s ready to return soon, people shouldn’t expect him to hit top form right away. Almost no one does after being out that long.
With Solanke still sidelined and last season’s top scorer, Brennan Johnson, gone to Crystal Palace as of Friday, Spurs are pretty light up front.
Mohammed Kudus probably won’t make it either after picking up a left leg injury early in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Sunderland. “He’s going for a scan. Yeah, most likely ruled out for Bournemouth,” Frank said.
There’s some good news, at least—Destiny Udogie is back in training after his hamstring problem and might be available. Captain Cristian Romero will play, even though the club didn’t appeal the FA’s charge about his conduct after getting sent off against Liverpool on December 20.
The FA says Romero acted improperly, didn’t leave the pitch quickly, and got in the ref’s face after that red card. Spurs responded to the charge and accepted it. As for whether Romero might get banned, Frank shrugged it off: “I honestly don’t know. He’s available for Bournemouth. That’s the game ahead for me.”
BREAKING REPORT: CAPTAIN MICKY VAN DE VEN SLAMS "EXPOSED" TACTICS AFTER TUDOR’S DEBUT LOSS
North London is Red! Discover why Micky van de Ven believes Spurs' high-risk tactics failed against a clinical Arsenal side.
Tottenham captain Micky van de Ven didn’t hold back after Spurs got hammered 4-1 at home by Arsenal. He admitted they took a big risk, and it blew up in their faces.
It was Igor Tudor’s first match in charge, but Spurs looked second best all afternoon. Arsenal showed why they’re top of the league, pulling five points clear by the end.
Eberechi Eze put Arsenal ahead just after the half-hour, but Spurs hit back almost instantly. Randal Kolo Muani pounced on a mistake from Declan Rice and levelled it up just 24 seconds later.
At halftime, it was still anyone’s game. Then Arsenal just took over. Viktor Gyokeres bagged a quick brace, with Eze adding another in between. Spurs couldn’t keep up.
After the match, Van de Ven didn’t sugarcoat it. He said Arsenal deserved the win. Spurs tried going man-to-man with their marking, hoping to press high, but it backfired. Kolo Muani lost track of Eze for the first goal, and Joao Palhinha got beaten to the ball by Gyokeres right after halftime.
“Arsenal was the better team,” Van de Ven said. “At 1-1, we were still in it, but once they scored right after halftime, it got really tough. We could have pressed better. We went high, but Arsenal just played through us. That’s something we have to fix. When you go man for man, if even one guy is late, you’re exposed. You win the ball high; you get chances, but if you miss, you’re wide open. That’s the risk.”
Spurs still haven’t won a league game in 2026 and now sit in 16th, only four points clear of the relegation zone.
Even so, Tudor says he believes they’ll stay up. He knows the job’s huge, but he’s not backing down.
“Yeah, I’m confident we’ll stay up,” Tudor said. “Tough game, bad result. They beat us, and we have to learn from it. We get back to work on Tuesday harder than before. We have to improve everything, every part of our football. There’s a lot to do.”
GLASNER RESPONDS: MANAGER DENIES DISRESPECTING FANS AFTER "GLASNER FINISHED" BANNERS APPEAR AT SELHURST
Oliver Glasner speaks out! Discover why Palace fans held "Finished" banners and how the manager responded after the Wolves win.
Oliver Glasner insists he didn’t disrespect Crystal Palace fans, even after they held up a banner that read "Fans disrespected – Glasner finished” during the 1-0 win over Wolves at Selhurst Park.
The supporters also unfurled another banner, “Opportunities missed, board inept", making it clear they were upset after Glasner told fans to “be humble” when some turned on him during Thursday’s Conference League match against Zrinjski Mostar.
“There were a few boos, and there was a banner. That’s fine. I’ll always speak my mind and say what I believe. I don’t think I ever disrespected anyone,” Glasner said. “People who know me know I’ve got huge respect for everyone; it doesn't matter who they are, what their job is, their background, or anything.”
He gets why the fans are disappointed. He’s frustrated, too. Maybe even more than anyone else, he says, because he’s so ambitious and never satisfied. Glasner admits he might have pushed the players too hard, and he’s willing to take criticism for it.
“That’s fine. What matters is the fans supported the team; they helped us win,” he said. “If they feel disrespected, I’m sorry. I never meant it that way. Maybe I used the wrong words. But I won’t stop saying what I think is right. I tell my own kids all the time: stay humble, and remember where you come from. If anyone felt disrespected, I’m truly sorry. That’s never my intention.”
Glasner also said he’s had clear-the-air talks with the club’s board and that both the hierarchy and the players still back him to lead until the end of the season.
“If the club thinks someone else would get better results, I wouldn’t stand in the way. "That's what I wanted to say,” he explained. “If the players think a different manager would help them do better, I won’t stand in the way. In the end, it’s up to the players. But when I spoke to them, they said they’ve had the best two years of their careers, and they still believe in what we’re doing.
“The club feels the same. If they’d said, ‘We’re not convinced,’ then maybe it’d be time for a change. But that’s not the case. The club believes, the players believe. And of course, I always believe in this team.”
Crystal Palace finally picked up a Premier League home win, a first since November, and there’s some much-needed positivity. But let’s be honest, the banners at Selhurst Park showed that Glasner still has a long way to go to fix things with the fans.
That “fans disrespected – Glasner finished” banner said it all. The frustration is real, especially after Glasner told them to "be humble" following the backlash in Bosnia. He tried to clear the air after Sunday’s game, and while he apologised, his main point was that he doesn’t think he did anything wrong. He didn’t really back down.
Palace got the win, thanks to Evann Guessand’s late goal, but after a shaky performance and another tense press conference, it feels like this standoff between Glasner and the fans is far from over.