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Who is Xavi Simons? The Barca academy star now graduating in Germany
It’s been a long and winding road for Xavi Simons, but his path to superstardom appears to be bang on course.
The Dutch midfielder, once a starlet at Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, is now hitting the high spots in the Bundesliga with a bright future ahead of him.
Still the property of French giants PSG, the 20-year-old attacking midfielder was loaned out to RB Leipzig despite reported interest from a number of Europe’s top clubs this summer – notably Arsenal.
And he appears to be enjoying life in Germany with three goals and four assists across his opening four league matches this season - the most recent against Augsburg delivering two goal involvements.
When Simons left Barca his destination was Paris, despite interest from Chelsea and Real Madrid. And he is gradually proving that he is here to stay as one of the finest young talents in European football.
For anyone keeping count, that's 4️⃣ assists and 3️⃣ goals for Xavi already this season 🤯
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) September 16, 2023
In his first stint at PSG, Xavi forged his way into the senior squad but only made 11 appearances in total. The 20-year-old returned to his roots in the Netherlands, heading to PSV Eindhoven in the summer of 2022 on a free transfer.
The Dutchman became a key part of Ruud van Nistelrooy's squad, pitching in with a total of 27 goal contributions in 48 matches last season. PSG eventually bought him back after just a single year by activating the €6million buy-back clause in his contract. Then though came that loan move to Leipzig and ANOTHER fresh start.
Despite the upheaval though, Simons is once again thriving, this time in the Bundesliga.
Slotting into Marco Rose’s 4-2-2-2 formation, playing in the second line of attack on the right side, Simons has fitted in immediately.
Combining with Benjamin Sesko, the young Dutchman has been part of a frightening attack for Die Roten Bullen, perhaps even breaking the hearts of Barcelona, who let him leave so freely.
His name has always been well known, but 2023 has really seen him prove that all the hype, and the interest from big clubs, is right on the mark.
Xavi Simons Transfer Value
Simons currently has an Expected Transfer Value of (xTV) of €32.2m, up massively from just €5.7m prior to that move to PSV.
Our data ranks him as the top Dutch talent of the future, ahead of Devyne Rensch of Ajax and Bjorn Meijer, at Club Brugge.
Inside the numbers
If we look deeper into the data, we can uncover what Simons is truly about. He is 99% considered a wide playmaker, and 67% as an inside forward.
Going through his numbers last season playing in the Eredivisie, where he clocked up 2910 minutes of game-time, it’s clear that he has everything you’d want for an attacker who can play multiple roles.
He scored 0.59 per 90 minutes of play, despite playing as an inside forward and not a No.9 - while providing 0.28 assists in the same amount of time.
Simons made a high number of dribbles per 90 minutes - 11.13 - and completed 5.63 of them by taking the ball past opponents. He also registered a high volume of shots per 90 minutes, striking the ball 2.72 per 90 minutes. Of this, Simons shoots 1.70 per 90 minutes from close range and the remaining 1.02 from long distance.
⚽ Xavi 🅰️ Openda
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) September 16, 2023
⚽ Openda 🅰️ Xavi
Starboy² 🤩#RBLFCA 3-0 pic.twitter.com/3skOlWazMy
The Dutchman is also happy to force his way into dangerous areas with 5.51 carries in 90 minutes, while he makes 2.94 passes into the final third and has an xA of 0.20 per 90 minutes.
Simons also makes a surprisingly high number of tackles given his position - clocking 0.77 per 90 minutes. Even more impressive is his rate of recovery, making 3.22 over the course of 90 minutes on average.
Terrific stats to back up the hype and the impression that this is a young player with a massive future ahead of him. The next big question is whether that future will eventually continue in Paris, or elsewhere.
Watch this space...
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