At a glance:
- Simons loving life under De Zerbi
- Dutchman played starring role vs Brighton
- Barcelona and Galatasaray want to sign Simons
Xavi Simons could be a key player for Tottenham as they aim to pull a rabbit out of their hat to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
With just five games to go, the North London outfit need at least two wins and other results to go their way as West Ham are currently two points above them.
Roberto De Zerbi’s arrival has clearly changed things for the better, but the fact of the matter is that they’ve only picked up one point from the Italian’s two games in charge of the club.
The game against Wolves is a must-win clash at Molineux on Sunday. And Simons is expected to take centre stage after his fantastic performance against Brighton.
And now, his feelings about De Zerbi have emerged and it is good news for Tottenham fans across the world.
Simons loving life under De Zerbi at Tottenham
After his £57m move from Leipzig last summer, Simons took his time to get going and didn’t really seem to enjoy his football under Thomas Frank or Igor Tudor.
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To be fair to him, he has been one of Tottenham’s best players since the turn of the year, so maybe he just needed a while to get going in English football.
And now, Tom Barclay has confirmed that he is relishing the prospect of working under De Zerbi.
“I’ve heard from people quite close to Xavi that they’ve had quite good connections so far him and De Zerbi,” said Barclay on the Tottenham Way podcast.
“I think Xavi really likes him, and he feels like he’s being counted on maybe more than previous managers.”
De Zerbi’s comments on Simons
Ahead of the game against Brighton, De Zerbi challenged Simons to rack up goals and assists.
“He’s lucky to work with me – not because I’m good, but because I was a number 10. What he thinks now, I thought 20 years ago. So we have a special connection,” said the Italian in his pre-match press conference.
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And the Dutchman did just that as he produced a fantastic assist for Pedro Porro in the first half and topped it off with an unbelievable goal after the interval.
And speaking after the game, De Zerbi admitted that he loves working with Simons because he played a similar role during his playing career.
“A number 10 has to understand that he has to score and he has to make assists, not just play to be nice – goals and assists,” said De Zerbi.
“He played very well, a great game. I think he can play better and better because a player like this needs to feel confidence from the manager, and I stay here to give him that.”
Simons has been linked with moves to Barcelona and Galatasaray.
If Tottenham get relegated, they may be forced to part with the Dutchman as he wouldn’t want to play Championship football.
However, if they remain in the Premier League, they shouldn’t even entertain the conversation of parting with Simons.
