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The groans of dissent at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were far less vociferous than they had been at Brentford as Spurs trudged off the pitch following their 1-1 draw with Sunderland.
This was a performance with notes of promise as Thomas Frank’s new-look attack provided the early incentive, taking a 30th-minute lead through Ben Davies.
As with Spurs, though, one step forward was followed by two steps back as Brian Brobbey’s 80th-minute equaliser compounded a tiring display in which they had already lost Mohammed Kudus to injury.
Kudus, who has been one of the few bright spots for Spurs this season, was replaced by Randal Kolo Muani inside 20 minutes after going down off the ball clutching his left leg.
Frank could hardly believe his luck. Just two days after sanctioning the departure of Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace, Spurs had lost the one man keeping him out of the side.
Frank defended the decision to let Johnson leave, stating that there was a short window in which to execute the deal.
“Decisions are made, and decisions I'm backing in every aspect,” said Frank after the game.
“There's always more bigger picture stuff to some of those decisions, and sometimes they can look like perfect timing, sometimes they look like not so perfect timing.”
Spurs will be active in the market, as Frank has reiterated over the last few weeks.
But, with Kudus potentially facing a period on the sidelines, they need to act quickly to add reinforcements to their rapidly depleting set of attacking options.
Kolo Muani impressed after coming on against Sunderland, but he is not a natural winger.
The same is also true on the left, where Mathys Tel added energy and directness but has failed to nail down a regular starting spot under Frank.
Wilson Odobert is the only natural wide man Spurs have available right now, yet his best moments against Sunderland came through the middle, as he burst past challenges before looking to spread the play wide.
It is clear Spurs are missing the creative talents of Xavi Simons, who will return from suspension against Bournemouth on Wednesday, and the injured Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison.
Ultimately, though, with no specific return date in place for Kulusevski and Simons struggling to adapt to the physicality of the Premier League, Spurs must act decisively in the transfer window.
During Frank’s time at Brentford, they did not make wholesale changes in January with deals often lined up for the summer. At Spurs, there is immediate pressure for results to improve.
