Thomas: “I think I do, because there's always small ups and downs in games and where there is different momentum, but I really mean what I've said. I've said that quite a few times - not everything has been perfect, but the ability to run and fight from the team in the last 11 games has been very, very good, especially in some tough moments. I keep referring to some second halves against Bournemouth, Villa and West Ham. Now lately Man City and actually Man United, it's so easy to crumble when it's tough and it's not going well, there’s scrutiny and there's everything else. You see a team that was fighting and running hard, away to Man United. We were going down 1-0 and they kept going. I think I see a lot and sometimes, for whatever reason, it just sometimes takes a little bit longer. Then you just need to do a little bit more to make sure that everything you do is more to make sure you can get to three points.”
Finally, the role of the fans - how much do they need to have patience?
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Thomas: “I can say we desperately need them, because when you are in a situation where it's not going straight forward, you need the fans even more. So, we need the fans massively to back the team and when they do that on the highest level – and, of course, we need to perform - if they see a team that's running and fighting and giving everything. They do everything to help. When they do everything to help, it just creates those magic moments. I refer that to the City game, but also the Dortmund game. That was fantastic to be there. That, we need tomorrow, because when you're a little bit down to the bare bones, not that many players. It's not that straight forward, it's maybe not as confident a team and all that. Then we need to push together.”
How are Kevin Danso and Deki Kulusevski, who you left out of your Champion League squad…
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Thomas: “Kevin, he met the consultant, it's going forward but still weeks before he's available. Deki has another appointment at the end of this week, then we’will know more. Of course, without the Champions League squad, it's a sign of that, it's not tomorrow.”
Will he be available before the end of the season?
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Thomas: “I don't know.”
Fans fear that they're in a relegation battle right now - do you have the players that can get you away from this area of the table? Are they up for this kind of battle?
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Thomas: “As I say, I focus on the game against Newcastle tomorrow. That's the most important thing is if we can get a good performance out there and get three points, then we will start to climb. That's what it's all about. We need to climb. Every year, every day, we need to climb the table until you are where you want to be. There's only one place where you want to be in the future. That's the main focus."
In your first press conference, you said we will lose matches. Do you regret starting off your tenure talking in that way, even though it was a reality that people might have to face up to?
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Thomas: “I think there are two things. It needs to be the nice combo between reality and selling hope. That's a fine balance. I knew it would be a tough season. I didn't expect it to be as tough as it's been. That's down to injuries, down to margins, down to a lot of things. You can say it’s two red cards after 30 minutes - that's not what you plan for. A lot of seasons you go through a season with zero red cards. It hasn’t been straightforward. I know where I want to go. I see a lot of good things going on as well. I would just say it's not as positive when you don't win the games.”
A former manager talked in a podcast this week about how this club should be aiming for bigger trophies in the Europa League. I think that's what I was asking…
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Thomas: “I want to win trophies. I want to do that, but I'm also very aware of where we are. It's not that we haven't done everything we could to do what we could achieve this season.”
Why is it easy at the minute for teams to score against Spurs?
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Thomas: “I definitely think that the defensive side is something that we would like to be even better at, especially as we started the season very well. It's very simple. If you can keep the ball out of the net, then you have a better chance of winning. It's something we are highlighting. It's something we are working on and talking about.”
Eddie Howe said he’s got to do better - are you having those same conversations with yourself and the coaching staff? Do you feel like you're performing at your best right now?
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“I try to find the margins every single day. I try to put the hours in every single day together with the staff and the coaches to do everything we can to get a bit of momentum. It's a bit of a stop-start. That's what we're working very hard on. There's only one way. That is head down, do what you believe in, keep going, stay calm."
Does Johan Lange face more accountability now for the situation two years in a row where the squad he has built is not serving the purpose it’s been built for?
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Thomas: “I think it's like with me. There's never only one person. I understand it's the head coach who gets the most blame when it's not going well. Maybe, you get a little bit of praise if it's going well. That's part of the job. I knew that. In my opinion, the way I've already seen it, I can't speak about what happened before. Of course, I've inherited a squad and some players, but the way I see it and the way we do it now is that we do things together. In the September transfer window, it was Fabio as a consultant, Johan, Vinai, Daniel and I. Now this window has been the Lewis family, Vinay, Johan, Fabio and I. That's been the way the whole time. It's us that do that.”
Is Radu Dragusin physically ready to play multiple games in a short space of time?
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Thomas: “He’s looked good in the games he’s played. He looks strong and I like that. I think as a defender, he's very good. You can just see his alert, his movement, the way he anticipates different situations, the way he tries to do the principles. I really like that and he's really competitive in every aspect. He's fine, he's strong and he's ready to go again tomorrow.”
How do you manage Destiny’s fitness long-term so that he's consistently available?
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Thomas: “It's an ongoing process to keep building him more and more robust every day so that it's a long-term process.”
What does that process look like of making him more robust?
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Thomas: “I think it's a combination of different things – gym work, recovery, training, managing, game load, all that.”
What did you make of Souza’s performance against United?
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Thomas: “He did very well, I'm very happy for him. Coming from Brazil, 19 years old, to Tottenham, Premier League, getting his debut at one of the most iconic stadiums in the world, that's a big thing. I hope him and his family are proud."