Xavi Simons bids farewell to PSV; will join Paris Saint Germain
Jul 17, 2023
Eindhoven [Netherlands], July 17 : Xavi Simons has left (Philips Sport Vereniging) PSV’s training camp in Austria to complete a move back to Paris Saint Germain, confirmed by PSV on their website.
The twenty-year-old forward joined PSV last season from Paris Saint Germain and became an important player in Ruud van Nistelrooij’s team.
Xavi made 49 appearances for PSV in all competitions. He scored 19 goals and registered nine assists. He has won the KNVB Cup, Johan Cruyff Shield and the Eredivisie top scorer award during his time with PSV.
On December 3, 2022, Simons made his Netherlands and World Cup debut with a 3-1 win over the United States in the round of 16.
Simons joined the youth setup of Barcelona in 2010 from Club Deportivo Thader of Alicante,[6] and quickly progressed to become one of the Spanish club's most highly rated youth players, with English club Chelsea, as well as Spanish giants Real Madrid, reportedly attempting to sign him at a young age.
In July 2019, Simons moved to French side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), having failed to agree a new contract with Barcelona. His three-year contract with the Parisian club was reportedly worth up to one million euro annually.
Ahead of the 2021–22 season, Simons was included in the first-team preparation and pre-season by manager Mauricio Pochettino. On July 14, 2021, he came off the bench and scored a goal in a 4–0 friendly win over Le Mans at the Camp des Loges
On 28 June 2022, Simons signed for Eredivisie club PSV on a five-year contract. Although he was initially expected to extend his contract with PSG and join PSV on loan, the situation changed when PSV no longer wanted a loan deal. However, PSG negotiated a six million euro buy-back clause in Simons's contract, effective in 2023.
Simons has represented the Netherlands at under-15, under-16, under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels.
On October 21, 2022, Simons joined the pre-selection of the Dutch national team for the first time in his career. A few weeks later, he was eventually called up for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by head coach Louis van Gaal. On December 3, Simons made his Netherlands and World Cup debut in a 3–1 win over the United States in the round of 16.
