Thomas Frank has spoken about Xavi Simons’ lack of confidence and explained why the Tottenham star was taken off midway through the second half despite coming on as a substitute in the first period.Some pundits are already writing off Xavi as a flop in the Premier League, and what happened on Saturday is only likely to add fuel to the fire.The Dutchman came on for Lucas Bergvall in the seventh minute after the Swede failed a concussion test, and he was ineffective once again.The 22-year-old was withdrawn on 72 minutes for Wilson Odobert as Tottenham went in search of an equaliser, and his body language suggested that he is struggling for confidence at the moment.Credit: n0mediaa / InstagramThomas Frank reveals why he took off Xavi Simons in Tottenham defeatFrank acknowledged that Tottenham’s summer signing is short of confidence at the moment in light of his recent struggles, but claimed that was not the reason for taking him off.The Spurs head coach pointed out that the Netherlands international had played all 90 minutes against Newcastle in midweek and was fatigued as a result.When asked if he was worried about Xavi’s confidence, Frank said (via Tottenham’s official website): “No, I think it’s part of it. There’s a reason why we didn’t start him, of course. I think he’s played two starts, short turnaround. Also, that energy and freshness I talked about played 90 minutes on Wednesday night.“That’s why we decided that, and then he played 70 minutes here. That was nothing. It’s just because it looks different when you come on after three minutes and get subbed off.”Frank is not critical of Xavi’s mistakes in possessionThe former RB Leipzig man looked extremely off pace once again, and he made several unforced errors in possession, with his wayward passes attracting groans from the home crowd.However, the Tottenham boss dismissed those errors, insisting that mistakes are part of football.When asked if he was frustrated by Xavi’s careless passes, Frank responded: “I think when players make mistakes on the pitch, if they lose a ball or they miss a pass, of course, I can get irritated. In general, I’m not talking about a specific situation. That’s part of football.“How many times have you seen a player miss a pass or do something? That happens. And that can be flow, that can be confidence, that can be everything, whatever it is. Mistakes are part of football.”READ MORE: Five things we learned from Tottenham’s 1-0 defeat at home to ChelseaThe post Thomas Frank opens up on Xavi Simons’ confidence and misplaced passes at Tottenham appeared first on Spurs Web.