Xavi Simons has opened up on his mindset and his competitive nature as he looks to make his mark at Tottenham Hotspur after a difficult start.
The attacking midfielder has not had the easiest of introductions into life in the Premier League, having had to find his feet at a dysfunctional team which has been in crisis.
In fact, many had already written off Xavi as a flop at Tottenham after his first couple of months at the club, but the 22-year-old has not allowed the criticism to affect him.
We are now seeing the Dutchman really come to the fore and produce the kind of displays we saw from him at RB Leipzig, but he is far from satisfied and has grander ambitions.
Tottenham star Xavi Simons insists he pays no attention to detractors
This kind of pressure is not new for the midfielder, who was tipped to be a superstar from a young age and had the spotlight on him through his teen years at Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.
Xavi admitted that he had learned to ignore the negative comments very early on and revealed his determination to achieve what he had set out to.
The Spurs star told Goal.com: “Everyone knows how challenging social media can be. You have the positive things, but you have the negative things as well. I think I’ve handled it in the best possible way.
MORE SPURS STORIES
“Nobody can say, ‘Xavi, you cannot do this’. I know what I can achieve and I know what I’m going to achieve. That’s important, and I have my family right behind me. They’re all I need.”
The attacking midfielder confessed that he is a family man, and it was special to have his loved ones with him when he signed for Spurs.
Speaking about his family, Xavi said: “They mean everything for me. It’s my life. Football is really important to me, but at the end, the most important thing in life is my family. Being there for me on a special day when I signed for Tottenham was really, really special. I’m really happy I can achieve my dreams together.”
Xavi idolises one Brazilian superstar he played with
The Netherlands international is never one to hide, even when things are not going against him, always wanting the ball and being ready for a battle, and he admits that he has had that competitive spirit from a young age.
“I was born like this,” he insists. “I have an older brother, and he was always the one winning against me when I was younger. That brought a bit of competitiveness to me.”
The Tottenham man confessed that he looks up to Brazilian superstar Neymar, with whom he had the opportunity to share a dressing room at PSG.
When asked what he likes about Neymar, Xavi responded: “Everything. He was the one who inspired me when I was young, he still inspires me. The way he expresses himself on and off the pitch, that’s something incredible.
“I know the real Neymar. People maybe only see the footballer, but the character and person he is off the pitch is an incredible guy, a family guy, a really warm guy.
“I remember being at home and saying to my mum, ‘I need to play with this guy one day’. He’s my idol, I wanted to achieve that. I worked hard and achieved that. Being with him every day, seeing how he is, how he does things, for me was really special. He’s the one who inspired me the most and the one that has helped me most in my football career.”