Xavi Simons

Xavier Quentin Shay Simons (born 21 April 2003) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain.

Not to be confused with Xavier Simons.
Xavi Simons
Simons with Paris Saint-Germain U19 in 2020
Personal information
Full name Xavier Quentin Shay Simons
Date of birth (2003-04-21) 21 April 2003
Place of birth Amsterdam, Netherlands
Height 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Paris Saint-Germain
Number 34
Youth career
2008–2010 CD Tháder
2010–2019 Barcelona
2019–2022 Paris Saint-Germain
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021– Paris Saint-Germain 6 (0)
National team‡
2018 Netherlands U15 5 (1)
2019 Netherlands U16 3 (0)
2019 Netherlands U17 6 (3)
2021– Netherlands U19 6 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 02:51, 21 April 2022 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 16 November 2021

Early life

Born in Amsterdam, Simons is the son of Dutch former footballer Regillio Simons.[1] Simons is of Surinamese descent through his father.[2] His older brother Faustino (born 1996), who also played football, shares the same birthday as him.[3]

Club career

Early career

Simons joined the youth setup of Barcelona in 2010 from CD Tháder,[4] 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.[5][6]

Paris Saint-Germain
Simons with Paris Saint-Germain in 2020

In July 2019, Simons moved to French side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), having failed to agree a new contract with Barcelona.[7][8] His three-year contract with the Parisian club was reportedly worth up to €1 million annually.[9][10] On 10 February 2021, Simons made his professional debut for PSG, coming on as a substitute for Julian Draxler in a 1–0 Coupe de France win over Caen.[11][12] He made his Ligue 1 debut as a substitute in a 4–1 win over Strasbourg two months later.[13] On 19 May 2021, he won his first professional trophy, the Coupe de France.[14]

Ahead of the 2021–22 season, Simons was included in the first-team preparation and pre-season by manager Mauricio Pochettino.[15] On 14 July 2021, he came off the bench and scored a goal in a 4–0 friendly win over Le Mans at the Camp des Loges.[16] He scored another goal in a 2–2 friendly draw against Chambly three days later at the same ground.[17] On 18 August, Simons was sent back to train with the under-19 squad coached by Zoumana Camara.[18] He eventually made his first appearance of the season for PSG in a 3–0 cup win over Feignies Aulnoye on 19 December, his first ever professional start.[19] On 3 January 2022, Simons recorded his first senior assist in a 4–0 cup win over Vannes, a pass for Kylian Mbappé.[20] His first league appearance of the 2021–22 season came in a 1–1 away draw to Lyon on 9 January, where he came on as a 69th minute substitute.[21] On 31 January, Simons missed the final penalty in a 6–5 penalty shoot-out defeat to Nice in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France.[22] On 11 February, he made his first league start in a 1–0 win over Rennes at the Parc des Princes.[23]

International career

Simons has represented the Netherlands at under-15, under-16, and under-17 level.[1][24]

Personal life

In March 2020, Simons was named on Goal's "NxGn 2020" list of 50 best wonderkids in world football.[25] He was also included in The Guardian's "Next Generation 2020" in October.[26] Simons has amassed a large following on social media platform Instagram, with over 3 million followers. He also has a sponsorship contract with sporting goods manufacturer Nike.[27]

Career statistics
As of match played 20 April 2022[28]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Paris Saint-Germain 2020–21 Ligue 1 1010000020
2021–22 Ligue 1 5030000080
Career total 60400000100

    Honours

    Paris Saint-Germain

    References
    1. Kelly, Ryan (24 July 2019). "Who is Xavi Simons? La Masia wonderkid who broke Barcelona hearts to join PSG". Goal. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    2. "Onderhandeling voor bondscoach gesprongen" [Negotiation for national coach jumped]. Suriname Nieuws (in Dutch). 25 March 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
    3. Faustino Simons at WorldFootball.net
    4. "Former Thader youngster Xavi Simons makes his debut for PSG". The Leader Newspaper. 27 February 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
    5. Webb, Tom (8 January 2016). "Chelsea Following the Progress of 12-Year-Old Barcelona Starlet Xavi Simons". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    6. Sunderland, Tom (16 January 2016). "Real Madrid Transfer News: Xavi Simons Plan Reported to 'Strike Back' at Ban". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    7. Llorens, Moises; Marsden, Sam (23 July 2019). "Barca lose Dutch youngster Xavi Simons to PSG". ESPN. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    8. "Simons explains his Barca exit: "Everyone dreams about Messi, but..."". BeSoccer. 13 October 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    9. "Xavi Simons is on €1 million-per-year at Paris Saint-Germain". GiveMeSport. 25 July 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    10. "Xavi Simons signs his first professional contract with Paris Saint-Germain". Paris Saint-Germain F.C. 23 July 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    11. "Debut for Xavi Simons". Paris Saint-Germain F.C. 11 February 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    12. "Caen vs. Paris Saint-Germain". ESPN. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
    13. "Strasbourg vs. PSG". Soccerway. Retrieved 10 April 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    14. Zavala, Steve (20 May 2021). "Xavi Simons Earned First Career Trophy Win with PSGs Triumph in the 2021 Coupe de France final". PSG Talk. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
    15. "Premier match amical pour le PSG" [First friendly match for PSG]. ParisTeam.fr (in French). 14 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    16. "Paris Saint-Germain V Le Mans" (in French). Paris Saint-Germain F.C. 14 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    17. Barbaud, Maxime (17 July 2021). "Amical : Chambly arrache le match nul contre le PSG" [Friendly: Chambly grabs a draw against PSG]. Foot Mercato (in French). Retrieved 17 July 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    18. "Xavi Simons and Edouard Michut return to PSG U19s, Ismaël Gharbi stays with the seniors". Get French Football News. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    19. "Feignies vs. Paris Saint-Germain". ESPN. 19 December 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    20. Johnson, Jonathan (3 January 2022). "PSG star Kylian Mbappe opens 2022 in style with 17-minute hat trick in Coupe de France blowout". CBS Sports. Retrieved 10 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    21. "Xavi Simons gets a chance to impress as PSG draw with Lyon". Football Oranje. 9 January 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
    22. "Nice eliminate holders PSG on penalties from French Cup". ESPN. 31 January 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
    23. "Xavi Simons makes history in PSG victory". Football Oranje. 11 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
    24. "Xavi Simons". UEFA. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    25. "NxGn 2020: The 50 best wonderkids in football". Goal. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
    26. Christenson, Marcus; Powell, Jim; Blight, Garry (7 October 2020). "Next Generation 2020: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
    27. Rossingh, Danielle (13 November 2019). "Xavi Simons: The Dutch soccer prodigy with two million Instagram followers". CNN. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
    28. Xavi Simons at Soccerway
    29. Bosher, Luke; Whitehead, Jacob (23 April 2022). "PSG crowned Ligue 1 champions after draw against Lens". The Athletic. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
    30. "Mbappe stars in Coupe de France final as PSG down Monaco". MARCA. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
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