Soccer Football - Premier League - AFC Bournemouth v Tottenham Hotspur - Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, Britain - January 7, 2026 Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank before the match Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs
Jan 8 (Reuters) - Embattled Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank drew the ire of fans after being photographed with a cup bearing the insignia of fierce rivals Arsenal on Wednesday, with the Dane later saying the mix-up was purely accidental.
Images of Frank walking around Bournemouth's Vitality Stadium sparked fresh outrage among Tottenham fans on social media, with supporters having already voiced their displeasure the manager amid a run of poor results.
A 3-2 defeat on Wednesday left Spurs 14th in the Premier League and at his post-match press conference Frank was unhappy with questions about the cup.
"It's fair to say that we are not winning every single football match, it would be absolutely stupid of me to take a cup with Arsenal on it (deliberately)," he said.
"They've (Arsenal) been in the changing room the game before us," he added. "It's normal to say, 'give me a cup of espresso' before every game. I think it's a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked a question like that."
Arsenal had visited Bournemouth in the league on Saturday.
"We are definitely going in the wrong direction if we are worrying about me having a cup of another club," added Frank. "Of course I wouldn't do that. That would be really stupid."
Tottenham next host Aston Villa in the FA Cup on Saturday.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
