How Mathys Tel fits into Thomas Frank plans as new Tottenham boss' role in transfer explained

Mathys Tel has become the first signing of the Thomas Frank era at Tottenham Hotspur after the Dane gave the green light to the transfer.

Spurs confirmed on Sunday that the 20-year-old's move from Bayern Munich will become permanent when his loan contract ends on June 30. The young Frenchman has agreed a six-year deal to seal a transfer that will cost Tottenham £29.8million (35million euros), plus a potential further £4.2million (5million euros) in add-ons. They knocked around £15million off the original £45million option to buy the player.

Tel had already cost the north London club £8.5million (10million euros) in the loan fee paid for last season's switch. That in itself could end up being the most important part of this move for while the France U21 international's early numbers in N17 might not leap out - four goal involvements in 20 matches - the then teenager was thrown into the fast and furious Premier League life immediately into a team lacking in confidence and fit players.

Tel had to instantly attempt to lead the line in a system and league he had no knowledge of and it's no coincidence that his performances became more and more assured as the season came to a close, particularly as he switched more often to a wider role that asked for the youngster to be less of a battering ram.

Those four months thrown into the deep end are expected to have served as an extended pre-season for the Frenchman as he looks to hit the ground running under a new coach next season following a campaign that brought him that Europa League winners' medal, with some bright cameos in the knockout stages, but also a Bundesliga title following half the year with Bayern.

Those within Spurs quickly saw Tel as strong technically with an excellent training mentality as well as being a positive character and influence on the squad. He had not played many minutes for Bayern ahead of his move so needed plenty of fitness and conditioning work with the belief remaining that he still needs to improve physically in the coming season, particularly in his explosiveness and the stamina required for the Premier League.

Tel is seen as good in his one vs one duels against defenders but could benefit from that extra bit of strength to further improve those moments. His finishing also requires work, as shown in some of the missed chances in the Premier League last season.

His performance against Nottingham Forest at home was held up internally as one of his best of the spell, with his energy and creativity from the flank, and that will be the yardstick for Tel as the foundation with what can be added on top with more consistency and plenty of coaching.

While the Frenchman is always eager to track back, his defensive work is also seen as requiring further development as is the case for most young attackers as he looks to become more than just an impact player under Frank.

Spurs and Ange Postecoglou were always confident from the off of signing Tel this summer permanently despite noises from Germany that he could yet reject them at the end of the season. The player settled quickly into life at the club and became a popular figure within the squad.

His hard-working performances in matches and training were noticed quickly by staff as well as his willingness to learn. With his journey at Bayern having not gone as smoothly as he liked after a bright second season in Germany with 16 goal involvements for an 18-year-old, had ensured a desire to get back on track.

Many also noticed Tel's maturity, born of so much experience so young, shown with his interactions with the Spurs supporters as he threw himself into the club culture. In March, the youngster stepped into the away end at Craven Cottage to ask the furious fans to "be together" after another disappointing league defeat.

While many of the more experienced players had already gone inside by that point, the then teenager had wanted to connect with the raging supporters and it showed his fearlessness and willingness to bring the club back together.

Just days after signing Tel on loan, Postecoglou had made it clear: "He'll be a Tottenham player, mate. He'll be a Tottenham player. I think he'll show everyone he's going to be a Tottenham player in the next six months. I didn't bring him here for six months."

On the chat that brought Tel to Spurs after he seemed to be unsure at first on the move and needed clarity, the Australian had said: "It was sort of an exchange - conversation, messages - that lasted a couple of hours and I felt that if I kept him on the phone long enough, I would wear him down. He was falling asleep by the end.

"I got a sense pretty early on that there was a connection there and he was hearing what he wanted to hear. It is a big decision. He is a 19-year-old man at a fantastic football club.

"They would have been quite happy to keep him there I am sure, but he also knew he needed to play. But not just play, play where he is going to develop. I think it is a credit to him that rather than just jump at what came at him, he was very thorough in the way he made his decision."

With Postecoglou's departure this month, while Spurs remained keen to sign Tel, any move would need to be favoured by the new man Frank. While spending less than £30million on a player in today's market is relatively cheap, it would still be a big outlay on a 'club signing' if the new head coach was not particularly happy about the move. Tottenham have been burned by such cheaper moves before, particularly during the Antonio Conte era after he bemoaned moves for Djed Spence and Arnaut Danjuma.

Yet in Frank they found someone more than happy to green light the switch for a versatile and talented young player who will be able to fit into various roles within his system. Frank utilises plenty of formations, mainly going with a 4-2-3-1 last season at Brentford but also switching to a 4-3-3, 4-4-2 and using a back three on occasions.

Tel will be able to play on either flank or support a striker in an attacking duo and has the energy and physicality to carry out the pressing that the Dane asks of his front players. Spurs have high hopes for his development in the coming months and he also brings something that will be key next season

That is Champions League experience, for even as a teenager Tel has played 16 times in the competition, scoring twice and laying on one assist. He will not be fazed by what comes next season against Europe's top sides as Spurs make a return to the competition.

Tel always seemed to want to stay in north London, saying after the final game of last season against Brighton, during which he had won the penalty for Dominic Solanke to score: "Tottenham is a big family with the fans, with everybody else. Tottenham is not just a club, it is everything for us. We have to keep going and win more trophies."

Tel is currently playing at the European U21 Championships with France alongside team-mate Wilson Odobert and was named player of the match in their win against Georgia on Saturday. He is seen as one for the now and long-term future at Tottenham. Frank's ability to develop young players, having worked through different age groups within the Danish international set-up, is seen as being key to unlocking the best of player that Harry Kane labelled as 'full of potential'.

Tottenham will push for further attacking signings alongside Tel, with Brentford's Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa the subject of plenty of interest from the north London club alongside Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo.

Timo Werner's loan move was not made permanent and he has returned to RB Leipzig, while Bryan Gil expects to leave Spurs this summer with a year left on his contract after a successful loan season at Girona ended with knee surgery. Manor Solomon wants to try to impress Frank in pre-season after a title-winning campaign at Leeds, although Tottenham are expected to still look at the market for a player who was signed on a free and has bumped up his value with an impressive season in the Championship.

Son Heung-min's future remains in doubt as the Spurs skipper enters the final 12 months of his contract, which leaves Tel, Wilson Odobert, Brennan Johnson and Dejan Kulusevski as players able to operate on the flanks in Frank's 4-2-3-1 and teenagers Mikey Moore and Yang Min-hyeok as ones to develop. Frank could also take a look at Jamie Donley this summer after the 20-year-old took a big step in his development on loan at Leyton Orient as they reached a Wembley play-off in League One.

This summer brings another fresh start at Tottenham and plenty of questions, but one that has been answered is the future of Mathys Tel and he will be looking to become a key player under Thomas Frank next season.

Thomas Frank is Spurs' new head coach! But what job does he have on his hands? Click here to listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham discussing Frank's task ahead! Or click here to watch on YouTube!

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