'The Thomas Frank effect' - but is there more to come from Spurs?

It's a breath of fresh air to see teams like Bournemouth and Sunderland exceeding expectations at the top of the Premier League - and I would include Tottenham in that list of over-achievers too.

There has been the odd disappointing performance under Thomas Frank, especially at home, but I don't think anyone thought it would be easy for him to quickly transition this squad into a team in his image - and not many Spurs fans would have expected them to be sitting in third place now.

I know there has still been some criticism from their supporters, especially with calls for more creativity in open play, and I can understand that, but sometimes you have to walk before you can run.

The glaring problems they had last season were conceding too many goals and being too easy to play against, and I'm sure when Frank arrived at Tottenham he thought, 'let's fix that first'.

He's done that, because if you look at their progress from the beginning of the season up until now, then one thing we can all say is that you can see the 'Thomas Frank effect'.

By that I mean they are now a team that is very well organised defensively, and very good on set-pieces too.

Yes, there have been times in games when they have looked a bit one-dimensional in what they are trying to do with the ball, and they have relied a lot on some magic from Mohammed Kudus to make chances out of nothing.

But I am confident we will see an improvement in that attacking element of their game when some of their injured players come back, firstly Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke and, longer-term, James Maddison as well.

So, while it's not been perfect so far, there is a lot of positive energy around what Frank is doing, and also a lot to look forward to.

Spurs have probably got the strongest squad they have had in a while, they are picking up points without playing brilliantly, and they are sitting in a really good place in the table, with some really strong reinforcements to come in.

It is still very early, but Frank has made a brilliant start in turning around a squad that had been depleted in confidence, and I feel like there is lots more to come.

Supporters like their team to have an identity, and I can already see one at Spurs under Frank after less than 10 league games.

At the moment they are a side which is well drilled with a tremendous work ethic and is difficult to beat, and not obsessed with playing out from the back and giving away stupid chances.

I'd also say they are reasonably pragmatic and rely heavily on set-plays, as we saw in their 3-0 win at Everton on Sunday, but there is nothing wrong with that.

Lots of other teams are the same and Spurs have got some big players to aim at, and others who can provide a good delivery.

At the moment it does feel like they are looking for individual brilliance from their forward players in open play to provide the magic moments in games, rather than a system to play through the opposition.

I look at them and think Kudus needs some help in that respect, but that help is coming.

The biggest reason I think they will improve, however, is Frank himself.

I don't believe Tottenham's​ current identity is set in stone because we saw how Brentford evolved under him over a number of seasons and he is only just getting started here.

When they first came into the Premier League, Brentford had a very direct style and were also quite obvious or predictable in what they did.

If you watched them last season, though, it was a totally different approach. They played out from the back through Christian Norgaard and although they could mix it up, they were not a one-trick pony.

This Tottenham team is going to evolve too, but first and foremost Frank has given them a solid base like he had early on at Brentford. For example, with the way their full-backs stay at home a little bit more, rather than flying up the pitch like they did under Ange Postecoglou.

We saw that on Sunday, where again Spurs got a bit of criticism for sitting back and inviting Everton on to them in the second half.

There were times when I was thinking to myself, 'come on, get out of your half because you are putting yourself under pressure', but you have to consider what had gone before that game.

Spurs had gone away from home in the Champions League on Wednesday and hung on for dear life for a draw against Monaco.

Most of the team from that game started on Sunday too, and they were 2-0 up at half-time after a decent performance, where they limited Everton to a few chances.

So, when you consider the travel and the intensity of that game against Monaco, I get why Frank decided to try to protect their lead after the break.

I am sure that, looking back, he would have wanted them to have a bit more quality on the ball when they did break away, because they gave the ball up a bit too easily and put themselves under unnecessary pressure.

In the weeks to come, against maybe higher quality opposition, then if they give away as much possession and sit off as deep as they did, they might get punished.

Hopefully they will have more in their legs for those bigger tests and also some of those attacking players they have been missing are back too.

Eventually, Frank will have to find the balance between being a front-footed attacking side that the fans enjoy watching and one that wins games because they are difficult to play against.

That's something Tottenham have always struggled to find, which is the reason they have had so many changes of manager - Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte were one extreme, and Postecoglou was the other.

But going from what we saw at Brentford, I think Frank will give the fans the type of football they want as well as delivering results.

He's got a much better squad at Spurs than he ever had with Brentford, so it's naive to think this team won't progress and become easier on the eye - I believe they will, 100%.

Danny Murphy was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.