Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank has defended captain Cristian Romero after he appeared to take aim at the club’s hierarchy, accusing them of telling “lies” in a since edited Instagram post.
Spurs have won just one of their past six Premier League games and sit 14th after losing 3-2 at Bournemouth on Thursday.
Following the defeat, Romero stated on Instagram “other people” should be coming out to speak and adding that they “only show up when things are going well, to tell a few lies”.
Frank says he has been happy with Romero’s performances on the pitch, but has spoken to the centre-back about the need to keep some views “internal”.
“I think he has done a lot of things right,” Frank said.
“He is still a young leader and he has done a lot of things well on and off the pitch.
“I was very happy with his performance last night. He was a true captain throughout the game and at half-time.
“But when you’re a young leader sometimes you make mistakes. It is good to keep it internal. We had a good conversation this morning which we will keep internally.”
Romero, 27, has since deleted his post and uploaded a new – almost identical statement – omitting the part about telling lies but still appearing to criticise senior figures at the club.
“Apologies to all fans of you who follow us everywhere, who are always there and will continue to be,” Romero posted., external
“We are responsible, there’s no doubt about that. But we will keep facing up to it and trying to turn the situation around, for ourselves and for the club.
“At times like this, it should be other people coming out to speak, but they don’t – as has been happening for several years now. They only show up when things are going well.
“We’ll stay here, working, sticking together and giving our all to turn things around. Especially at times like this, keeping quiet, working harder and moving forward all together, is part of football.”
