“If I were Ronald Koeman, I would build a team around Xavi Simons.” This is what Rafael Van der Vaart said in an interview with NOS Sport at the beginning of February. The former Dutch star said it again a few weeks later, for Voetbal International: “He can become the best in the world.” Just that… The RB Leipzig player has no shortage of praise, and that’s quite normal, he who is coming off a big season under the colors of PSV Eindhoven and who has confirmed in Germany since the start of the campaign 2023-24.
As for Van der Vaart’s second statement, we will have time to see. Regarding the first, Koeman does not have much choice for this gathering: the Oranje must cope without numerous executives, packages (Memphis, De Ligt, De Jong, Botman, Gakpo) or not called up (Wijnaldum). When he talks about the “surprises” that could emerge against the Blues, this Friday (8:45 p.m., TF1), or in Greece on Monday, Koeman is undoubtedly thinking at least partly of himself. One thing is certain: the former Barça coach did not wait to see his players drop like flies to place his trust in the native of Amsterdam, raised at La Masia (2010-19) then trained at PSG ( 2019-22) before striking out on his own in the Netherlands last season and in Germany today.
Selected for the first time by Louis van Gaal at the end of 2022 for the 2022 World Cup, “a dream come true” as he declared at the time, Xavi Simons had only played a handful of minutes in Qatar, in the round of 16 against the United States (3-1), his very first in A. Not used during the group stage, he did not come into play during the stormy elimination against Argentina ( 2-2 ap, 5-6 tab), in quarters. Since the World Cup, however, he has started each time. Ronald Koeman has put his name in his team’s starting 11 six times, bringing his total selection to seven. And it is therefore a safe bet that this will be the case again this Friday. Moreover, Xavi Simons was not the worst during the Dutch debacle at the Stade de France (4-0) in the first leg last March. It was his first tenure. However, the brilliant 20-year-old striker has not yet celebrated his first goal.
A small incongruity when we see his rhythm at club… Little used in Paris (11 matches, 0 goals, 1 assist), he blew like a tornado in the Netherlands: 22 goals and 12 assists in 48 matches under the orders of Ruud van Nistelrooy, who would have liked to keep him at PSV last summer. “He’s a key player for us. I wasn’t yet at that level at that age,” said the former Manchester United spearhead in February. Alas, he slammed the door of the Eindhoven club himself in the off-season. A choice which undoubtedly weighed in the balance. Free party in 2022 with a clause which gave priority to PSG, Simons thus gave in to the Parisian sirens.
And this while Koeman was rather in favor of seeing him stay at PSV. “Xavi Simons is a good boy, he called me this summer to talk to me about his future. It’s important that he plays, he did well to play for PSV and I hope he stays there because he plays regularly. For a young man it is important to play. He’s a great player and he will be a great player,” the coach said in July to Mundo Deportivo.
In any case, it’s a masterstroke for Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, very active in this issue: €6 million! For such a young and promising player, efficient, professional, technically adept and… star of social networks, it’s a deal. Signing a five-year contract, Xavi Simons was however not sure of finding his place in the Parisian rotation. He therefore joined Leipzig, on loan with no option to buy. A club on a human scale, known for nurturing young talents and where Marco Rose, the coach, knew how to find the words. “That was one of the factors that made me come here, he really wanted me. I had a good impression,” he said upon his arrival at the Red Bulls, referring to “a big step forward”. It was in English, it will soon be in German. Polyglot, he also speaks Spanish, Dutch and French, having also learned Catalan during his years in Barcelona. “In January, I will do my first interview in German,” he trumpets in a form of self-imposed challenge.
All with the ambition to “achieve something (in Leipzig) and leave (his) mark on the club”. It’s off to a good start. Xavi Simons has been directly involved in seven goals since the start of the season (3 goals, 4 assists). The graft took immediately. It was all the simpler as the person concerned found several of his former teammates at RasenBallsport (Bitshiabu at PSG, Olmo, Moriba at Barça), not to mention several French speakers (Openda, Haidara, Simakan, Lukeba) and many English speakers . For the rest, the Rose style suits him perfectly on the pitch, that’s pretty clear. Note that he compiled these statistics in… three matches. No goals or assists in his last five outings, including in C1.
One could wonder if Xavi Simons would hold up physically in the Bundesliga. The question is already answered. “I was very surprised. We saw the CV, Barça, PSG, we knew he knew how to play football, but he is not huge. Certainly, it is strong, sheathed, but we wondered if, physically, it would do the trick. And we saw it… He exploded in the Netherlands, he proved to everyone that despite his size, he can play in this position and against big defenders,” his French teammate indicated last season at PSV, Olivier Boscagli, on RMC radio. The observation is the same in Germany, where the right-hander gets along perfectly with the ex-Lensois Lois Openda, he who plays mainly on the right with Leipzig. With the Netherlands, he started on the left before switching to the right.
Xavi Simons, young man in a hurry. Kylian Mbappé was preaching a conviction when he told him that “there is no age in football”. “If a 21-year-old is better than a 25-year-old, the 21-year-old will play. “That’s what I always have in mind,” he told De Telegraaf in April. His mentor, however, was Neymar, whom he had already known at Barça. “He took on a sort of fatherly role for me. I will always be grateful to him. It was a big dream to play with my idol and he is still an important person to me,” he recalled in September, to Sky.
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It remains to be seen what the future holds for Xavi Simons. Already under the spell, the leaders of Leipzig do not hide their desire to extend his stay in Germany. They do it very openly. Some sources have even indulged in talking about an agreement in this sense. According to our information, this is completely false. There is not even a discussion in this sense. All options are on the table and no decision will be made for many months. Almost all options. Xavi Simons could very well return to Paris to establish himself there or see his loan to Leipzig extended, or even go elsewhere, on loan. Because in all cases, the hypothesis of a transfer in 2024 is the least probable of all at the moment. You should never say never, but it is not clear what could lead to this decision. In the meantime, it’s time for Netherlands – France, a poster which could allow Xavi Simons to strengthen his status as a great hope, or even move him a little further into another category.