Tottenham identify ‘horrific’ player as their ‘weakness’ after being held by Manchester United.

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Thomas Frank expressed satisfaction with his team’s second-half performance despite dropping two points in their 2-2 draw with Manchester United.

Frank said: “I think it was a good performance at home against Man United, especially in the second half. I liked that when we came out 1-0 down, the players stayed in the game and continued following the principles. We turned it around and earned a deserved equaliser. We got what could have been the winner.”

He acknowledged the late equaliser but remained positive: “It’s disappointing they scored so late, but it’s not the first time in football history that happens. To come back in the way we did, I’m very happy. It was a good step forward in terms of what we want to do, though we are not yet where we want to be with free-flowing football.”

Frank faced criticism for substituting Xavi Simons for Mathys Tel on the 79th minute, but the move proved decisive as Tel scored the equaliser. “Every substitution I make is for the team’s benefit, with the sole aim of trying to win the match,” Frank explained. “Today, it was successful. Mathys came in and scored. For Xavi, it was another positive step forward. He’s started a lot of games, and we needed a bit of extra freshness.”

Meanwhile, former England international Stuart Pearce criticised Tottenham defender Cristian Romero for his performance. Spurs went behind in the first half to a Bryan Mbeumo header, before Mathys Tel and Richarlison put Tottenham ahead. However, Matthijs de Ligt’s late header earned Manchester United a 2-2 draw.

Pearce, speaking on talkSPORT, said: “If I was a chief scout sent to watch Romero, I would identify him as a weakness. You can get in behind him, and I’d advise leaving him where he is. It’s horrific what Romero is doing at the moment. He gives the ball away in midfield and doesn’t even make a recovery run. As a defender, that should be instinctive. He’s pushing up into midfield, getting bypassed, and jogging back without helping out.”

Romero limped off in the 88th minute with the scores level at 1-1, but by that stage, Pearce had already singled him out as a weak point in Tottenham’s defence.