As Tottenham Hotspur struggled to get themselves up for facing Manchester City at home, Gary Neville let rip at Thomas Frank’s struggling players
Patrick Austen-Hardy Senior Sports Journalist
17:40, 01 Feb 2026Updated 18:58, 01 Feb 2026
Thomas Frank could not believe what he was seeing in the first half(Image: 2026 Robin Jones)
Gary Neville slated the atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as “flat as a pancake” before describing the intensity as a “charity game”.
Thomas Frank’s side hosted Manchester City a matter of days after securing a fourth placed finish in the Champions League table. Any positive momentum gained from the 2-0 away victory over Eintracht Frankfurt was absent in the first half in north London.
Spurs were insipid in the opening 45 minutes and were punished with goals from Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo. During the limp collapse to Pep Guardiola’s side, Neville tore into the atmosphere within the £1billion stadium, likening it to a charity match.
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He described the noise levels and buzz within the stadium as “flat as a pancake” before mocking the sterile and apathetic feeling around the ground. Comparing the clash against City with Chelsea’s dramatic 3-2 victory over West Ham United, the ex-Manchester United defender said: “It’s a little bit different than the game last night, Chelsea vs West Ham.
“It’s a little bit like Soccer Aid (this), bring Robbie Williams and Harry Styles on at half time, lift the crowd a little bit!”
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A huge number of Tottenham fans had not returned to their seats by the time the second half whistle was blown. There were huge swathes of empty seats, minutes after the restart. Observing the stadium becoming emptier and emptier, Neville added: “There was a planned walkout at 75 minutes.
“But unless those Tottenham fans are having a couple of drinks, I wouldn’t blame them if they were, a lot of them have not come out for the second half. At the top, you can’t quite see it, but it’s empty at the top as well. It’s eery times.”
Two quick-fire goals from City silenced the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium(Image: 2026 Vince Mignott/MB Media)
Spurs fans were woken up by Dominic Solanke halving the deficit with a second goal in two games. The ex-Bournemouth forward, who found the net against Frankfurt, dinked the ball over City shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
He then flipped the mood completely by scoring a stunning second goal. After brilliant harrying from Conor Gallagher was followed by an even better cross, Solanke flicked the ball with his heel and diverted the ball over Donnarumma.
It provided a much needed boost to Spurs, who have been struggling domestically. Before the match, Frank had to deal with 11 first team players being absent against the Cityzens.
Solanke’s goal injected fresh hope into the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium(Image: 2026 Charlotte Wilson/Offside)
James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Mohammed Kudus, Pedro Porro, Micky van de Ven, Lucas Bergvall, Ben Davies, Rodrigo Bentancur, Richarlison, Djed Spence and Kevin Danso were all absent for the home clash. Speaking about the injuries, Frank said: “I think it’s fair to say that we’re hit pretty hard with injuries.
“But it’s part of the game. We need to find solutions, others need to step up. Kevin Danso, having hyperextended his big toe, a ligament snapped, because he landed on the foot of an opponent, so extremely unlucky, like a random injury.
“He’s got time with a consultant next week, so we don’t know exactly the length of it. It’s in a big toe, so hopefully not too worrying. Djed a minor calf injury.”
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