Joe Cole has sympathised with Tottenham Hotspur supporters after a frustrating couple of years in the Premier League, with Thomas Frank having struggled to endear himself to fans
08:00, 10 Feb 2026
Thomas Frak during a Tottenham Hotspur game
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The pressure is on Thomas Frank at Tottenham(Image: Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images)
Joe Cole has slammed higher-ups at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for 'always recruiting maybes'. Since the Lilywhites last finished in the top four of the Premier League, which was in May 2022, they've forked out £786m (€903m) on arrivals while recuperating just £260m (€298m).
Despite such an outplay on players, Tottenham have struggled to cement themselves a place in the Champions League. Ange Postecoglou, of course, ended the north Londoners' trophy drought last season, beating Manchester United in the final of the Europa League.
But, while Spurs finally qualifed for the Europe's top flight competition again, they ended the Premier League campaign in 17th place, and just 13 points above the drop zone.
The Lilywhites haven't enjoyed as much of a return on their eye-watering investments as they would've hoped, and Cole has urged club officials to rethink their model.
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Speaking to football.london ahead of this week's Premier League fixtures, which will be broadcast on TNT Sports and discovery+, the Chelsea legend said: "Tottenham are always recruiting ‘maybes’, they’re always recruiting to develop and to sell.
"That’s always been the case, and what happens is, when you haven’t got a structure which is as good as Brighton or Brentford, which is a little bit more consistent, you're going to have eras where you go a year, 18 months, two years where none of the signings are working.
"You're going to have times when they're all working and you get a Gareth Bale, and you get a Luke Modric, and players like that, and you can ship them. I think they’ve just had a spell where they’ve bought badly."
Daniel Levy
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Daniel Levy left the club earlier this season(Image: Getty Images)
Cole added: "On top of that, I think the frustration for the fans has been growing because there doesn't seem to be any communication coming out of the club with, ‘What are we?’ You know, 'Are we competing?'
"The best and the worst thing that has happened at Tottenham in recent decades is getting to the Champions League final because it put them in a false sense of where they're at in the scheme of things.
"They’ve lost Daniel Levy as well, which I think was – he done a great job – part of that era where they was just looking to develop players and build the business rather than win on the pitch. The fans, I think they feel a bit lost at the fans at the moment."
Earlier this month, Johan Lange reflected on the January transfer window. The Tottenham sporting director welcomed two new faces to the club, signing Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid and Souza from Santos for a combined fee of just under £50milion.
FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GERMANY - JANUARY 28: Thomas Frank, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, reacts prior to the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD8 match between Eintracht Frankfurt and Tottenham Hotspur at Frankfurt Stadion on January 28, 2026 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
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Tottenham Hotspur were not as active as expected on transfer deadline day(Image: Alex Grimm, Getty Images)
In an interview with club media, Lange claimed the 'highly frustrating' wave of injuries impacted his approach, stressing the need to remain 'disciplined'. The Dane also stated that Spurs have owners who are 'very willing to invest', despite complaints from sections of the fanbase.
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Lange also admitted that Tottenham are in a better financial situation than most Premier League clubs, but he cited the Premier League's spending rules as a constraint. Towards the end of the interview, Lange insisted that he has 'big ambitions of strengthening the team' in the summer.
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