Trying To Make Sense Of The Xavi Simons Saga And How PSG Should Proceed
The Xavi Simons transfer saga has been an absolute mess. Even when he was at PSV Eindhoven, nothing in this saga ever made sense. Last July, Paris Saint-Germain activated the 4 million buyback clause to bring the Dutchman back to Paris after a very successful season in the Eredivisie. With both Neymar Jr and Kylian Mbappé still at the club, PSG loaned him to German club RB Leipzig. In Germany, he has had an incredible season. He has recorded 22 goal contributions, and has become one of the most sought-after youngsters in the world.
After it was announced Kylian Mbappé would leave, Fabrizio Romano reported that Paris Saint-Germain would be building their project around two players. Seventeen-year-old French midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery and Simons. However, on May 9th, French reporter Fabrice Hawkins dropped a shocking report and said that Simons would not be continuing in Paris next season, and that he is unmotivated to return to France following his loan. While this has been backtracked on by this point, there is plenty of uncertainty around Xavi’s future. Essentially everything has been thrown out as a possibility, and here is what I think will happen and what I would want to happen as a Paris Saint-Germain fan.
First, I will talk about the best scenario for PSG. They have been heavily linked to many star attackers, including Napoli’s duo of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen, Sporting’s Viktor Gyökeres, and AC Milan’s Rafael Leão. It has been reported that PSG sporting director Luis Campos loves Leão, but manager Luis Enrique does not feel the same. Leão does not give the defensive effort that Enrique wants to see from his attackers, and that has reportedly led to the Spaniard vetoing any possibility of that signing. That preference leads perfectly to the interest in Kvaratskhelia. He is a genius with the ball at his feet and also gives incredible defensive effort. I could potentially also see them bringing Osimhen along with his teammate. Italian sources have talked about the possibility of PSG even sending Randal Kolo Muani to Napoli in a swap like that and filling two holes at once in the attack. In an ideal situation for PSG, they sign those two, but then they still have to decide between Xavi Simons and Ousmane Dembélé. While Dembélé did have some struggles this season, he also displayed incredible creativity with the ball at his feet. His final third work does need to improve, however. Earlier in the year, Enrique tried playing Dembélé in somewhat of a midfield role. It didn’t work because he was too often losing the ball in dangerous positions, but that is a role Xavi could fit in perfectly. I do not want to give up on Dembélé yet, so what I would do if I were in charge would be to have Simons sign an extension before loaning him back to RB Leipzig for a season. After another season, you decide between Dembélé and Simons, selling whichever one you choose against for a big fee.
Next, what I think will happen. There have been reports all over the place. Some have said Simons can choose his next loan spot, some have said that he will return to Barcelona, and some have said that he will be sold. I believe that Simons’ future also relies on the future of Kvaratskhelia. If Paris brings in Kvaratskhelia, I would have a hard time seeing Simons at the club next season. His future revolves around playing time. The issue is not that he doesn’t want to play at PSG, simply that he doesn’t want to sit on the bench at PSG. He wouldn’t have resigned there last summer if he had no intentions of playing for them, but a young player like him needs consistent game time. The idea of PSG signing Kvara and Xavi playing as a false 9 was thrown out, but I doubt that happens.
If PSG were to move on, there are a few clubs I could see heavily pursuing Simons. The first is Barcelona. After quoting Johan Cruyff’s “if you have second thoughts on playing for Barcelona, you are no longer of service to us” numerous times in response to him leaving for PSG in 2019 and then returning to PSG in 2023 after the media threw out the possibility of him going back to Barca, their fans are once again back on this file. I would be shocked if he is back at Barcelona next season, however. It makes no sense for Paris to do a normal loan to another top European contender, especially a club they have a very poor relationship with. If Barcelona wanted to bring the player in, they would need to negotiate a transfer, and I just cannot see that happening. With their financial state, they are unable to throw out the nine-figure transfer fee that Paris would be asking for. There have been some reports that Paris would need it to be a loan with an obligation to buy, as if they sell this summer then some of the fee would go to PSV Eindhoven, but that does not change things. I cannot see Barcelona coming up with the money. Some reports have said that Simons gets to decide where he is loaned for next year, and that is the one scenario where a Barca return could be possible. This just seems very unlikely, however. I highly doubt that PSG would give that much power to a player who isn’t one of the game's massive superstars. Outside of Kylian Mbappé, PSG has generally tried to avoid letting players have more power than the club, and that is exactly what a clause like that would do for Simons.
The five clubs I could see Simons at next season are Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Chelsea, or RB Leipzig. Arsenal has been heavily linked with him, but I honestly do not see where he fits in that squad. Martin Ødegaard is one of the best attacking midfielders in the world, and Simons works in very similar areas to him. Potentially they could pull Kai Havertz from the lineup and play Simons as a false nine, but I doubt they would do that. Another London club that is interested is Chelsea. With Mykhaylo Mudryk not living up to expectations, they could bring in the Dutchman to replace him. Todd Bohley loves to throw around money, but the lack of a clear vision past just spending as much as possible could potentially scare a young player away. United is in a similar spot to Chelsea. They have had some massive transfer failures, and should tear down completely. They have some good building blocks like Kobbie Mainoo, Rasmus Højlund, and Alejandro Garnacho, and adding Simons to play on the right wing could bode well for them if they embrace a youth movement. Bayern superstar Jamal Musiala has been linked with a Man City move, and if that were to happen Simons would be one of their top targets to replace the German. Finally, I think it is very much possible this complicated saga simply ends with a loan back to RB Leipzig for a season. Paris probably does not want to give up such a talented player if they are not forced to, and a loan back to Germany gives them time to evaluate him compared to some of their current players such as Dembélé or Barcola’s growth over this upcoming summer, and then make a decision after that. This would likely require Simons to sign a renewal, as he would only have two years left on his contract after the 24/25 season.
The Xavi Simons saga is unlike any other. I truly have no idea what is going on, and I don’t think anyone else does. Reports have ranged from the Leipzig loan actually being 18 months, to Paris wanting to build around him, to him wanting nothing to do with a return. This will be one of the most interesting files of the summer, and we should have an answer in the upcoming weeks, as it has been reported both Xavi and PSG want a decision by the Euros.
