Spurs fans' boos are a plea for more responsibility-taking
Thomas Frank is a highly capable manager and thoughtful individual and it is worth him looking more deeply at what triggered the booing of his goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario. He argued that those doing it “can’t be true Tottenham fans” but actually it is very possible to argue the opposite: these fans know their club so well, and love it so much, that they were reacting to the long-standing fault-line running through Spurs and that is the lack of individual accountability.
The brief booing sounded almost a totting-up process of other occasions when individuals haven’t taken responsibility, an issue that Antonio Conte ranted about before leaving in 2023. The boos towards Vicario during the Fulham game on Saturday were drawn from a deep well of frustration. It was frustration spilling over at poor defending that led to Vicario needing to run out of his area to reach the ball.
It was frustration over Vicario risking a turnover with his pass down the line. Frustration over the failure of their defenders not to sense the danger and at least one of them take responsibility and get back on the line with Vicario awol. Frustration that Vicario didn’t immediately own his mistake with a raised hand.