Thomas Frank axes Tottenham star from squad after he crossed line ‘one too many’ times

Tottenham manager Thomas Frank has put his foot down and made a big call ahead of his side’s match against Paris Saint-Germain in the Super Cup on Wednesday night

Thomas Frank has drawn a line in the sand at Tottenham by leaving Yves Bissouma at home for their Super Cup match against Paris Saint-Germain.

Spurs take on PSG in Udine on Wednesday night when they will have the opportunity to add another piece of silverware to their collection after winning the Europa League. It will be the first competitive game in charge for Frank, who arrived from Brentford to replace Ange Postecoglou.

And the Dane has made his expectations clear by punishing Bissouma for poor time keeping. At a press conference in Udine, Frank was asked for an update on Dominic Solanke, Destiny Udogie and Radu Dragusin, who have been carrying injuries but have joined the squad in Italy.

“The players that have that little bit longer, the longer terms are here for backing the team and being part of the group,” he replied.

“Dom is the positive one, he’s available for selection tomorrow, so that’s very good. Destiny is closer and getting closer to training with the group. So those are two big ones, and then Bissouma has not travelled with the team because of disciplinary reasons.”

READ MORE: Transfer news LIVE: Liverpool open talks after Isak bombshell, Baleba to Man Utd, Arsenal latestREAD MORE: Eberechi Eze transfer: Tottenham look to hijack Arsenal’s £68m move and hold upper hand

Asked to explain further, Frank added: “He has been late several times and now this latest time was one too many. With everything, you need to give your players a lot of love but also have demands and there also need to be consequences and this time there was a consequence for that.

“For me, there has been a consequence and that is for this trip. I will follow up on that when I come home. I will park it for now because there is a relatively important game tomorrow.”

It is not the first time that Bissouma has been disciplined during his time at Tottenham – and this instance could prove costly, with just a year left on his contract and with Joao Palhinha having arrived on loan from Bayern Munich.

The 28-year-old Mali international was suspended by the club for the first game of the last season after a video appeared on social media that appeared to show him inhaling nitrous oxide.

“I want to apologise for these videos,” he said at the time. “This was a severe lack of judgment. I understand how serious this is and the health risks involved, and I also take my responsibility as a footballer and role model very seriously.”

The midfielder was criticised by Postecoglou in March after being substituted in a 2-0 defeat by Fulham. Asked to explain his decision to withdraw Bissouma, Postecoglou said he allowed “games to drift him by.”

He joined Spurs from Brighton for £30million in June 2022 and has made 100 appearances for the club, scoring twice. Bissouma was an important player under Postecoglou’s management, making 44 appearances last season as Spurs finished a lowly 17th in the Premier League.

Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.