As Xavi Simons continues to struggle for Tottenham Hotspur, a reliable French source has revealed what the attacking midfielder privately thinks about his situation, with Spurs manager Thomas Frank’s tactics to be partly blamed.
Much was expected of Simons when Tottenham signed the Netherlands international attacking midfielder for £51.8million (€59m, $68.2m) in the January transfer window. Although Simons could not make a massive impact at Paris Saint-Germain, he shone for RB Leipzig, scoring 22 goals and registering 24 assists in 78 appearances for the German club before earning the move to Tottenham.
Simons has been largely underwhelming for last season’s Europa League winners.
The 22-year-old has not scored in 15 matches in all competitions for Tottenham and has given only two assists.
Simons did not start for Tottenham in the North London derby against Arsenal last weekend, while against Chelsea on November 1, Spurs manager Thomas Frank brought him on as a substitute in the seventh minute and took him out on 73 minutes.
L’Equipe has revealed what Simons thinks about his struggles at Tottenham so far this campaign, with the French publication noting three reasons – the ‘intensity’ of the Premier League, lack of pre-season and Frank initially playing him on the left wing.
‘Spurs would like Xavi Simons to be a little less subdued than he was during his last appearance at the Emirates Stadium and deliver a more immediate return on investment,’ wrote L’Equipe.
‘But the former Paris Saint-Germain player is struggling to adapt to the demands of English football.
‘In private, he admits to being surprised, nonetheless, by the intensity of the matches and training sessions across the Channel.
‘He also believes that not having completed preseason training with the team—he transferred from Leipzig, with whom he started the season, just three days before the transfer window closed in August—didn’t necessarily facilitate his integration.
‘Finally, he was initially used on the left wing, where he doesn’t feel comfortable, before being repositioned more recently as a number 10, a more natural role.’
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Questions raised over Xavi Simons’ suitability for Premier League
Given the intense North London rivalry between Tottenham and Arsenal, Spurs fans may not be huge fans of Gunners legend Thierry Henry, but the Frenchman’s verdict on Simons will be something that the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium faithful will be worried about.
Henry told Sky Sports: “It’s not easy to arrive in a team and perform straight away. We can see Florian Wirtz at Liverpool, but I always have a question mark on people that perform in Germany.
“That’s only me. I’m not saying that they won’t perform in another league. I’m just saying, because of the way the league is, they’re really stretched.
“So if you can run well, you’re going to have a lot of opportunity, goals, assists. People can run with you in this league. So it’s very difficult.
“Do you think the managers right now are letting their players dribble or do they want to control everything to make sure they’re not going to get countered?
“Playing a low block all the time is not always easy to create. Look at Arsenal. We don’t create a lot of opportunities. We score a lot on set pieces.
“I’m not going to go back to the old story and everything, but you need to find a way to score goals.
“So, you’re going to create way less than what we used to be able to do in our time because teams are playing low. They don’t try to bite or come out.
“So, the spaces are tight. And if you don’t allow people to dribble and make mistakes, like I always say, the reward is in the risk.
“Where are you going? You’re not going to have the stats of creating. And if you don’t take your chances when you have one, well, you’re in trouble.”
Meanwhile, Simons has said that he is looking forward to playing against his former club Paris Saint-Germain in Paris in the Champions League on Wednesday evening.
The 22-year-old failed to make a huge impact during two spells at PSG, but the Dutch youngster has fond memories of his time at the Ligue 1 club.
Simons told Le Parisien: “I’m really looking forward to it. You know, I had some excellent times in Paris. It’s where I took the first steps of my professional career.
“Being alongside Neymar, Mbappé, Verratti, such talented players, and seeing how the whole team approached football, not only on the pitch but also off it, was very enriching for me.
“They showed me what I needed to do to reach the highest level. Playing here was a fantastic experience.
“I made a lot of friends in Paris. But now, I have to admit that after playing with Wilson Odobert in the PSG youth team, I’m especially eager to return to the Parc des Princes and share that moment with him.”
When asked why he left PSG, Simons said: “It was the right decision at the time. I needed more playing time to continue developing. I have very fond memories of that period.”
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Latest Tottenham transfer news: £145m double raid, Real Madrid blow
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