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A product of Barcelona’s La Masia academy, Simons moved to Paris St-Germain in 2019 as a teenager before impressing during a loan spell at PSV in 2022-23.<\/p>\n
He would spend the next two seasons at Leipzig, scoring 22 goals and providing 24 assists in 78 games across all competitions for the German side.<\/p>\n
He is the second major transfer from Leipzig to the Premier League this summer, following Benjamin Sesko’s move to Manchester United in a deal worth \u00a373.7m.<\/p>\n
Named Xavi, after the former Barcelona and Spain midfielder, Simons has long been one of the most sought-after players in Europe.<\/p>\n
He quickly became a gem in the Catalan giants’ esteemed academy after joining aged seven, and was recognised far beyond it.<\/p>\n
By the time he was 14, Simons boasted more than a million Instagram followers, a contract with Nike and had starred in an advert alongside Neymar and Ronaldinho.<\/p>\n
Yet at 16, Simons’ career trajectory took a huge detour. Having failed to reach an agreement with Barcelona he joined PSG, following in the footsteps of his idol Neymar – saying the Brazilian looked after him like a “little brother”.<\/p>\n
At 17, in February 2021, he made his debut but further opportunities were limited and, by the end of the following season, Simons had accumulated just 11 senior appearances in all competitions.<\/p>\n
He went in search of regular football.<\/p>\n
The Dutch international is a versatile prospect who operates on either wing or behind the striker and speaks six languages.<\/p>\n
He became the Netherlands’ youngest player to feature in the knockout stages of the World Cup when he made his debut against the USA in Qatar in 2022.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n