Sunday’s briefing: Pressure mounts on Frank while Pep perplexed by referee call

Thomas Frank faced more calls to leave from Tottenham fans on Saturday and the pressure on Liverpool boss Arne Slot increased after a last-gasp loss to Bournemouth.

Manchester City got back to winning ways to close the gap on Arsenal, but Pep Guardiola was far from happy and took aim at rookie referee Farai Hallam.

Under-fire Frank faces more calls to be sacked by Spurs supporters

Thomas Frank told Tottenham fans he was “working very, very hard” to turn the club’s fortunes around after Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Burnley ended with more chants for him to be sacked.

Spurs captain Cristian Romero’s flying last-minute header salvaged a point, but this result made it only two wins in 14 Premier League matches for under-fire Frank.

A midweek 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund eased the pressure on Frank, who was quickly brought back down to earth at Turf Moor with calls for him to be “sacked in the morning” and the away end also chanted for old boss Mauricio Pochettino.

“We just need to keep going. We do so many things right, but there’s no doubt, it’s not dropping so easy for us,” Frank insisted.

“I think the message to the fans, as I’ve said all the time, is that we’re working very hard to make sure everything is going (in) the right direction and that we’ll keep doing that,” Frank added.

Slot defends tired Liverpool players after late loss

Cherries winger Amine Adli scrambled home a winner with virtually the last kick of an enthralling contest to spark wild celebrations at the Vitality Stadium.

The Reds, who registered a 3-0 Champions League win in Marseille on Wednesday evening, had looked set to escape wet and windy Dorset with a fifth successive top-flight draw after Virgil van Dijk and Dominik Szoboszlai cancelled out strikes from Evanilson and Alex Jimenez.

Slot reflected: “After we scored at 2-2, we were still trying, but I think it’s safe to say that a few players of ours ran out of energy and I cannot even criticise them for that, because two days ago (three) we had to play an away game.

“We’re the only team that played Champions League that has two days in between. This time after an away game, another away game against one of the most intense teams in the league and I mainly play the same players because of the players we have available.”

Pep perplexed by referee call and demands Webb explanation

Pep Guardiola bemoaned refereeing standards as he called for an explanation as to why Manchester City were denied in penalty in Saturday’s victory over Wolves.

City comfortably saw off the Premier League’s bottom side 2-0 at the Etihad Stadium to end a run of four games without a win.

It cut Arsenal’s lead at the top to four points but referee Farai Hallam, in charge of his first top-flight game, refused to award City a spot-kick after Omar Marmoush flicked the ball against Yerson Mosquera’s arm despite being told to review the decision by VAR on the pitchside monitor.

“The referee made a huge debut. Now everybody will know him. I think it’s the first time they go to the TV and disallow what is a ‘normal’ position of the arms. I am pretty sure (referees’ chief) Howard Webb is going to appear in the media with an explanation,” Guardiola claimed.

“I’m waiting. Howard Webb come tomorrow and explain why it’s not a penalty.”

Nuno not satisfied after Hammers secure back-to-back wins

Nuno Espirito Santo says West Ham still need new signings to maintain their survival bid after they boosted their chances of beating the drop with a rousing 3-1 win over Sunderland.

All looked lost for Nuno’s increasingly beleaguered side less than two weeks ago when they slipped seven points adrift of safety, but they backed up a win over Tottenham with three more points.

Crysencio Summerville and Mateus Fernandes were on target either side of Jarrod Bowen’s penalty and it moved them within two points of 17th-placed Nottingham Forest.

“We have one week to go,” said Nuno. “I still believe that we need to rebalance our squad. We need options in some positions.

“We need to become more competitive. I still believe in the work the club is doing.”

What’s on today?

League leaders Arsenal host Michael Carrick’s Manchester United in a crucial match for the title and top-four race.

Crystal Palace host Chelsea after a turbulent fortnight and high-flying Aston Villa travel to Newcastle. Meanwhile, lowly Forest will aim to arrest their slump at Brentford.