When it was revealed that Cristian Romero wouldn't be coming out for the second half of Sunday's game against Manchester City, some believed the Argentine had been disciplined by Thomas Frank for a half-time rant.
While Romero has stuck by his unpopular manager by enjoying an impressive run of goalscoring form, the Argentine cut a mightily frustrated figure during the opening 45 minutes on Sunday.
A bleak but familiar first half display was once again bereft of intent and energy, with an eerie atmosphere permeating across N17. It was one of indifference and borderline apathy, with Man City so overwhelmingly superior.
Romero attempted to inject some life into his side with a trademark charge or two, but City's playmakers were often too slick to succumb to the Argentine's wrath. Thus, the defender, in a bid to compensate for Spurs' general lethargy, instead appeared chaotic and clumsy.
While not particularly vocal, the potential for Romero's frustrations to boil over in the dressing room seemed legitimate. However, Frank has since confirmed that his captain was absent for another reason.
Illness the reason for Romero's second half absence vs. Man City
It would appear that there was no Romero half-time rant. According to the Tottenham boss, the defender was struggling with an illness, and the Dane decided to withdraw him after a poor first-half showing. He didn't look quite right, that's for sure.
"[It was because of] illness. So we are assessing him. Hopefully he is fine," Frank said post-match.
"He struggled through the Frankfurt game as well, but he pushed through that with a fantastic captain's performance. He struggled a little bit [today], but we hope it's nothing."
Romero's exit left the hosts, then 2-0 behind, with a makeshift centre-back pairing of João Palhinha and Radu Drăgușin, who made his first appearance for the club in over a year and was partly responsible for the concession of a second goal just before the break.
Damage limitation was seemingly the name of the game for Frank's side, but Tottenham instead produced a superb second-half showing to snatch a point. The manager's switch to a back four helped, as did the introduction of Pape Matar Sarr. Crucially, Spurs played with far more vigour out of possession and were able to ruffle a Man City side that treated the first half like a pre-season encounter.
Our point, courtesy of Dominic Solanke's Puskas-worthy scorpion-kick, ultimately aided Arsenal's title charge, but supporters undoubtedly departed N17 with a sense of pride. For the first time in a while, it felt like there was something to get behind.