Thomas Frank oversees Tottenham training as uncertainty grows over his future

Thomas Frank oversaw training at Tottenham on Sunday and maintained a business-as-usual front ahead of the club’s Champions League tie against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, despite uncertainty raging over his future.

Frank’s continued employment is in the balance after Spurs’ last-gasp 2-1 home defeat to West Ham on Saturday, when supporters called for him to be “sacked in the morning”. The defeat left Tottenham 14th in the Premier League and extended a poor run in the competition; they have won only two of their past 13 league games.

The club remain alive in the Champions League and are said to have a good chance of progressing to the knockout phase, but are braced for empty seats for the visit of Dortmund. Spurs have added former Ajax manager John Heitinga to Frank’s staff to replace assistant Matt Wells, who left before Christmas to become head coach at Colorado Rapids; Heitinga took the session on Sunday with Frank in an overseeing role.

The board have been reluctant to dismiss Frank, mindful that some problems this season were not of his own making during what was described as a transitional campaign. Vinai Venkatesham, the chief executive, wrote an open letter to supporters before the West Ham game urging patience, but Callum Wilson’s stoppage-time winner sparked sustained booing and ill-feeling among the crowd, leaving the directors with a decision to make.

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Sports, Tottenham Hotspur, Thomas Frank, John Heitinga, West Ham United, Borussia Dortmund