Xavi Simons didn’t just move to Tottenham Hotspur last summer; he arrived in London convinced he was about to rule it.
With a €65m transfer, after a battle with Chelsea, and a determination to prove himself in the Premier League, he was convinced he could become the “Next King of North London”.
Or at least, that’s what the advertising campaign with PUMA said. Instead, it’s been a disastrous season for him and Tottenham.
And now BILD’s Leipzig edition want to stick the knife in.
German media not kind
The German newspaper report on the Tottenham forward today and it is not kind. The German outlet are openly revelling in his downfall, painting Xavi Simons as a would-be superstar who has completely misjudged his own rise.
They point out that instead of a coronation, Simons is now sweating over a potential relegation from the Premier League.
Tottenham’s defeat to Sunderland on Sunday left them in the bottom three. West Ham, in 17th, are now two points clear. Nottingham Forest are three ahead in 16th and Leeds United now six in 15th.
The extra jab for Simons in all that, is that Sunderland’s goalscorer was a former RB Leipzig player, Nordi Mukiele. He’s currently 16 points ahead of him in 10th.
Flirting with Barcelona
Simons, once hyped as Leipzig’s next great export, now looks like a player trapped in a disaster he ever saw coming. Six games remain for him to rescue Tottenham.
BILD doubt he’ll be able to manage it.
According to their information, the 22-year-old has already begun flirting with a return to Barcelona. But BILD mock that idea too? Would Barcelona even want him back. Right now, the Catalans seem far more interested in players who aren’t battling Premier League relegation.
They say it is ‘questionable’ whether Hansi Flick and co ‘would have any use for him’. That’s a sign of just how far he’s fallen.
It’s a grim situation for a forward who didn’t expect to be in this situation. Back in Germany, they’re very clearly revelling in that fact.