Thomas Frank had some strong words during his press conference, as the Tottenham boss reacted to losing out on the Eberechi Eze transfer.

This time last week, Tottenham fans were eagerly awaiting the arrival of Eberechi Eze to their club following multiple reports of talks progressing for the attacker. Spurs had a clear pathway for the Crystal Palace star despite earlier interest from Arsenal.

Some reports had claimed that personal terms with Eze were all but agreed, and a deal with Palace inched closer to conclusion. A few days ago, credible sources claimed that Tottenham had indeed found a verbal agreement with Palace for Eze, with a fee in excess of £60 million being mentioned.

However, the events on Wednesday changed the course of the transfer when it appeared Eze was primed to join Tottenham. On the day, credible reports pointed towards a big injury to Kai Havertz over at Arsenal, with David Ornstein suggesting in his post that the Gunners were expected to act in the transfer market to find a solution.

Little did Tottenham envisage that they would return for Eze, as Arsenal wasted no time in finding an agreement. Eze is now set to join Arsenal with medicals and other formalities likely to be completed before their game against Leeds United on Saturday, although the playmaker is not expected to feature.

The notion of Arsenal beating Tottenham for a top player has been the narrative in media and social media circles since the reported hijack. Thomas Frank was naturally asked about the failed move for the Palace star during his press conference, with the Tottenham boss responding with strong words that appeared on Foot Mercato.

Frank said, “I don’t talk about specific players unless they are part of our fantastic club. There have been a lot of rumors, but often they are based on nothing. That’s part of the job. To be very clear, I don’t want players who don’t want to come to the club.”

“If they don’t want to come to our club, to wear this fantastic badge, we don’t want them here. There are several things to consider. The club is working very hard to see if we can strengthen the squad with players who can improve it. That’s what we will continue to do until the end of the transfer window”.

The implication of ‘wanting to play for the club’ comes after widespread reports stating that Eze was a boyhood Arsenal fan, and it was his dream to feature for the club. The Tottenham boss’s comments will be taken far in the media, but there was nothing his club could have done to prevent the playmaker from going to their bitter rivals, given the circumstances.

Spurs need an attacking midfielder before the transfer deadline following their failure to lure in Morgan Gibbs-White and then the serious injury to James Maddison. They have earmarked Morgan Rogers as an alternative to Eze, but the chances of them signing the Aston Villa star are remote to none.

Similarly, there are other names on their list, but the chances of landing a top-draw attacking midfielder appear slim at this stage. Spurs still have time to galvanise their transfer window and bring in the right players before the deadline, but their fanbase will be extremely disappointed wth the board after Arsenal beating Tottenham to Eze.