Chelsea have already added Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens to their attacking unit this summer, but it seems they aren’t done there, with interest now brewing in Xavi Simons.
The Dutchman has been heavily linked with Chelsea this summer, along with both Arsenal and Bayern Munich who have also been touted as potential destinations for the 22-year-old.
But the question is, why is Simons so desirable to Chelsea? We’ve taken a look to break down his game, from positions, strengths, weaknesses and selected comparisons.
What position does Xavi Simons play?
Xavi Simons has been a huge name in the football world from a very young age, emerging through La Masia’s academy, before making the move to PSG.
However, after limited chances for the French giants in the 2021-22 campaign, Simons made the move to PSV where he truly began to show signs of living up to those early high expectations of him.
In his only season at the Dutch club, Simons made 48 appearances, scoring 22 goals, providing 11 assists and managing 3,800 minutes played.
His ability to play all across the attacking line was key, starting 19 games on the left, 22 through the middle and seven games on the right.
Since moving to RB Leipzig, this same positional versatility has served Simons well, playing multiple positions for the German outfit too.
However, during the 2024-25 season, the 22-year-old has almost exclusively played on the left side, whether being out wide or in the left half space.
RB Leipzig operate in a fairly unique 4-2-2-2 system, where the two attacking midfielders behind the strikers have freedom to drift between wide and central zones.
This has suited Simons playstyle really nicely, linking up with nicely with David Raum at left-back, who would offer good support runs, allowing the young Dutchman to thrive.
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What are Xavi Simons’ strengths?
Simons excels as a creator in the final third, averaging 0.29 assists per 90 for Leipzig, totalling their most assists for the campaign with seven.
The 22-year-old ranks fourth in the Bundesliga for through balls completed, with only Michael Olise, Exequiel Palacios and Florian Wirtz managing more.
Simons averaged 0.42 through balls completed per 90, also managing 2.13 chances created per 90 and 0.5 big chances created per 90.
Alongside his creative passing, Simons also thrives when carrying the ball in central areas, having a unique ability to ride challenges with defenders on his back, either forcing a foul or gaining ground in dangerous areas.
The Dutch international averaged 2.34 fouls drawn per 90 last season in the Bundesliga, producing 3.56 progressive carries and 2.97 carries into the final third.
An ability to carry through the middle is something the Blues were lacking last campaign, with most of their players thriving more on the outside of the block, rather than inside.
What are Xavi Simons’ weaknesses?
The biggest worry for Chelsea fans would be the slight frame of Simons and whether he can adjust to the physical demands of the Premier League.
Whilst we mentioned Simons ability to ride tackles with players on his back as a strength, he is often able to be dispossessed through side to side contact, which can often happen when he looks to carry on the outside.
The young midfielder’s successful take-on numbers dropped quite heavily from the 2023-24 campaign to the 2024-25 campaign.
Simons went from completing 2.85 successful take-ons per 90 with a 52.5% success rate in the 23-24 season, to averaging just 1.38 successful take-ons per 90 with a 33.0% success rate in the 24-25 season.
However, with the addition of Gittens at Chelsea this summer, the Blues would have a variety of options in regards to different types of ball carriers who excel either on the inside or outside of a defensive block.
How Xavi Simons’ compares…
When you compare Simons to other Chelsea attacking options, especially in those central and left-sided areas the young Dutchman could occupy, you can see why the Blues are interested.
Simons ranks at the same level of output for goals and assists per 90 as Chelsea’s main man, Cole Palmer, with 0.5 goals and 0.3 assists.
He also averaged the highest shot accuracy with 69.7%, the most forward passes with 12.2 per 90 and the most through balls with 1.00 per 90.
Last season, Enzo Maresca often played Pedro Neto on the left, despite his preference to play on the right, due to a lack of options on the opposite side.
All three of Christopher Nkunku, Joao Felix and Jadon Sancho failed to truly make the position theirs, all having weaknesses of their own that hindered the team and clearly lost them trust with the manager at times.
However, with Simons and Gittens now acquired, you can make a good guess that Maresca will be much happier to experiment on his left side, giving him a variety of tools to play with when configuring game plans next season.