Xavi Simons’ struggles at Tottenham Hotspur continued against Chelsea as the midfielder looked well off the pace in the London derby.
Simons, who Chelsea nearly signed, has now gone ten matches without a single goal involvement, and this will be a major concern for Thomas Frank.
Too often, the Dutch international found himself being caught in possession against the Blues, and eventually, he was taken off, despite being substituted on after five minutes.
Jamie Carragher has now been discussing the 22-year-old, and he thinks it’s clear why he is not producing at Tottenham Hotspur right now.
Jamie Carragher on Xavi Simons’ Premier League struggles
Carragher believes that Xavi Simons has been unable to cope with the speed and physicality of the Premier League.
There was a moment in the second half where the youngster showed his class to get away from a defender before taking too long on the ball and being dispossessed.
Speaking on Sky Sports commentary, Carragher said: “You know what, it was fantastic initially, but when you’re in the Premier League, the pace and physicality of players coming back at you. Fantastic skill from Xavi Simons, then he thinks he’s got all the time in the world to run away, but you just don’t have it.”
Tottenham fans still believe in Simons, but his display against the West Londoners won’t have built up their confidence anymore.
He managed to lose possession on 15 occasions during the match, so it was no wonder Frank opted to take him off.
Following his withdrawal, the former Premier League defender added: “I thought it would be Xavi Simons coming off, it won’t be nice for him, it doesn’t feel the same as he came on so early, but he’s found it tough.
“It was a perfect example that turn, he got away from someone, but before you know it, someone is back at him, and that is just the nature of the Premier League.
“It has been really interesting with him and Florian Wirtz too, they’re just finding it tough to get up to the speed of the Premier League.”
Tottenham set an unwanted record under Thomas Frank
Tottenham registered an xG of just 0.10 in the defeat to Chelsea, which is the lowest recorded by one of their teams.
The stat perhaps highlights how poor Spurs’ creative players have been, but might also suggest how Frank is not getting the most out of them.
The Lilywhites have plenty of exciting attacking talents in their squad, in the likes of Mohammed Kudus, Simons, Lucas Bergvall, Pape Matar Sarr, Pedro Porro, but right now they are not showing it.