Tottenham boss Thomas Frank urges fans to support Mathys Tel after the young forward received racist abuse on social media following the UEFA Super Cup defeat to PSG.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank has expressed his support for Mathys Tel, the young forward who was subjected to racist abuse on social media after missing a penalty in the UEFA Super Cup defeat to PSG. 

Frank expects Spurs fans to rally behind Tel during the Premier League opener against Burnley on Saturday. “I think it’s terrible what happened to Mathys,” Frank said, emphasizing that the club is doing everything to support the player.

The abuse Tel received is widely condemned, with many fans and pundits expressing their disgust at the behavior of some individuals.

Frank believes that the real Tottenham supporters will stand by Tel, saying, “There’s no real Tottenham supporter that will do that (abuse). You’ll see the real Tottenham supporters at the stadium tomorrow backing him. I expect big cheers for him tomorrow.”

Frank’s comments come as he prepares for his first competitive home game as Spurs manager. Despite the defeat to PSG, Frank was impressed by his team’s mentality and approach to the game. “One thing is the mentality of the group. Very strong mentality and we saw that against PSG, the way they worked and their approach to it,” he said.

The Spurs boss also confirmed that Yves Bissouma will be back in the squad for the match against Burnley. Bissouma was dropped for the Super Cup defeat due to poor timekeeping, but Frank said, “Bissouma was a situation. I addressed it, there was a consequence. He will be in the squad tomorrow.”

As Frank looks to kick-start his Spurs tenure with a win against Burnley, he admitted to feeling calm ahead of the match. However, he expects his nerves to kick in closer to kickoff. “I will have (nerves) tomorrow. If I’m honest now I’m in work mode. I know when I wake up tomorrow and when I step into the stadium I will feel it,” Frank said.