Thomas Frank praised Tottenham's "incredible" achievement as they secured an important victory at Eintracht Frankfurt to book a place in the Champions League last 16.

Randal Kolo Muani and Dominic Solanke scored in wintry conditions in Germany as Spurs avoided having to play a two-legged play-off tie in February.

Spurs, only 14th in the Premier League, scored 65 seconds into the second half of Wednesday's game when Kolo Muani flicked the ball in from six yards after Cristian Romero headed down Xavi Simons' cross.

Frank's side had been booed off in recent domestic matches, with some supporters chanting for the Dane to be sacked midway through his first season.

But they were the superior side in this game and doubled their lead when substitute Solanke fired into the bottom left corner, ensuring Spurs finished fourth in the league phase and ahead of many of Europe's elite teams.

"I am very proud of the players and the character shown," said head coach Frank. "It is a big step to finish top eight and to actually finish fourth in the Champions League is incredible.

"I'm very happy with the result, but even more happy with the performance. We looked in control more or less throughout the game. It was a more than well-deserved 2-0 win."

Spurs can focus attention on improving their Premier League position before returning to Champions League action in March.

Their automatic qualification for the last 16 had been in doubt before this game, and after 35 minutes with the scoreline goalless they were down to ninth in the table.

But Frank will be delighted with what became a dominant showing from his side as European results continue to provide a welcome contrast to their Premier League struggles.

It was a European run that appeared to keep Ange Postecoglou in a Tottenham job last season, despite poor Premier League form.

Ultimately, winning the Europa League was still not enough for the Australian, who was sacked at the end of the campaign.

The Champions League has looked to be Frank's saviour, with Spurs winning five of their eight group matches, drawing twice, with their only defeat being a thrilling 5-3 loss against trophy holders Paris St-Germain.

This victory will perhaps not appease all the club's fans, who could point to a favourable draw that has seen their wins come against Villarreal, Copenhagen, Slavia Prague, Borussia Dortmund and an already-eliminated Frankfurt.

But this success may at least buy Frank time, with an injury-ravaged squad avoiding two extra games in a daunting February fixture line-up that includes Premier League matches against three of the top four – Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal - as well as a game against Newcastle.

"For basically Dortmund and this game we had 12 outfield players available, so a lot of players had to push through 90 minutes maybe not being there, so the character and mentality is big in the team," added Frank.

"With 17 points, there are a lot of positives."

Tottenham have gone without a win in five Premier League matches, so fans may have travelled to Germany fearing the outcome. They will return having witnessed a disciplined and dominant display.

Simons thought he had given them a second-minute lead, only for the goal to be ruled out as Destiny Udogie had earlier been in an offside position and fouled his opponent.

Joao Palhinha had a header pushed wide, Wilson Odobert shot against the post, and Simons almost pounced on an error from home goalkeeper Kaua Santos.

There was a major scare for Spurs when Frankfurt's Hugo Larsson raced through, but he could only blast against the crossbar from six yards when it was goalless.

Kolo Muani quickly settled Tottenham's nerves after the restart with the breakthrough goal against the side he played for in the 2022-23 season.

Spurs dominated the rest of the game, with Kolo Muani, Pape Matar Sarr and Romero all missing chances, before Solanke's goal allowed Frank and his side to celebrate victory and qualification.

Tottenham have a daunting run of Premier League fixtures in February, starting with a home game against Manchester City on Sunday, 1 February (16:30 GMT), followed by matches away to Manchester United and at home against Newcastle and Arsenal.

Eintracht Frankfurt, eighth in the German Bundesliga, return to league action at home against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday (14:30 GMT) as they target a place in European football next season, with no more continental action in 2025-26.