Tottenham’s statement signing of the summer was undoubtedly their £52 million deal for Xavi Simons, and he apparently has something never seen before.
Xavi Simons tipped to shine for Tottenham
The 22-year-old trained with the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar at PSG in his youth, after coming through Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy too, and he’s widely regarded as one of Europe’s finest young playmakers.
After two excellent seasons at RB Leipzig, Simons rejected Chelsea in favour of a move to north London during the final days of the summer window, and the cost of this deal could set the Lilywhites back £125 million, when factoring in wages and transfer cost, over a potential seven-year deal (Paul O’Keefe).
Appearances
25
Minutes played
2,157
Goals
10
Assists
7
Bookings
5
Shots at goal per 90 minutes
2
Passing accuracy
82.9%
Average match rating
7.32
via WhoScored
It was quite the investment in what was one of ex-chairman Daniel Levy’s final acts leading the club before he resigned a fortnight ago, with Simons already showing some promising signs.
Thomas Frank has chosen to utilise the Dutchman out wide on the left in his first two games against West Ham and Villarreal.
Simons has already notched his first assist for the Lilywhites, setting up Pape Sarr’s header against West Ham with an in-swinging cross from a corner, and he impressed at the London Stadium overall.
While the young attacking midfielder attracted some criticism after his Champions League debut, given he was arguably fortunate not to get sent off (GiveMeSport), Simons is widely tipped to shine for his new club in the Premier League.
Members of the media tip Simons to be a “sensation” under Frank, and former Man United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy has already said that the ex-Bundesliga gem has something he’s never seen before.
Ruud van Nistelrooy said Xavi Simons' mentality is "unprecedented"
Speaking to Voetbal International in 2022, van Nistelrooy hailed Simons’ “unprecedented” mentality, having worked with the player during his loan spell in the Netherlands back in 2022/2023.
“His mentality, his mindset, it’s unprecedented. It’s a boy of only 19 years old, but Xavi is already much further advanced than his age,” van Nistelrooy said.
“But he really is a pure professional, a boy who is working towards a goal, who wants to get the most out of his qualities.”
Interestingly, this contradicts rumours from Germany that Simons’ attitude is questionable, but Bundesliga expert Kevin Hatchard was quick to suggest that there may not be anything to these claims about Tottenham’s signing.
“My only concern over him is sometimes the body language is not great, sometimes the attitude isn’t all that it could be,” Hatchard said on talkSPORT, right after Tottenham sealed the deal for him.
“I don’t know him personally, all I do know is that throughout his time in Germany there has been talk of, ‘is his attitude the best? And can he be disruptive?’
“That might be unfair. That might just be gossip but that has been in the German media.”