For most of the summer 2025 transfer window, then RB Leipzig star attacking midfielder Xavi Simons appeared to be very close to a move to Chelsea. It was only in the end of the battle that Chelsea seemed to drag their feet, leading Tottenham Hotspur to swoop in out of nowhere and sign him as a Plan B after the awful Morgan Gibbs-White saga in which Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis unprofessionally blocked the transfer of a player on a valid release clause.
Simons, in the end, was then really a Plan C option to Eberechi Eze as well. Eze, a local London hero who had just won the FA Cup as the clear star of a Michael Olise less Crystal Palace attack, was set to join Tottenham. At the last second, childhood club Arsenal sealed his signature with a slightly sweeter offer to the Eagles, leaving Spurs holding the bag.
Tottenham came away from the entire ordeal actually being happy with their catch. Simons turned out to be cheaper than the other options and is even younger. In theory, he had even more upside despite not being proven at the Premier League level.
Xavi Simons was poor vs. Liverpool
But after another poor performance that came with a red card as a cherry on top, Chelsea and Arsenal have to be looking at the Simons transfer and thinking that they came out on top. It's not like their alternatives, Alejandro Garnacho and Eze, have been totally lighting it up either, but Garnacho's Carabao Cup displays and Eze's menacing hat trick in the embarrassing Spurs North London Derby defeat both outweight Simons's minimal production.
Obviously, Simons has not been helped by Thomas Frank, the tactics, the overall setup, or players around him like Richarlison this season. But he has to take some accountability for his struggles, especially since he is one of the very few 60 million pound transfers in the history of the Spurs.
Simons has just two truly great games all season long, and they were against bottom feeders in Brentford and West Ham in games Spurs dominated. But Simons is not elevating the team in more difficult games, and against opponents like Liverpool, Manchester United, and both Chelsea and Arsenal off the bench, he is a non factor. And he just held his team back against the Reds. Simons has to do more in the big games, otherwise Arsenal and Chelsea will not regret missing out one bit.