Manchester United missed out on Xavi Simons last summer and Premier League legend Ruud van Nistelrooy now believes his ‘destiny’ is to join La Liga giants Real Madrid.
After one of Van Nistelrooy’s former clubs tried and failed to secure Xavi Simons’ signature, the man himself believes the RB Leipzig talisman is destined follow in his footsteps. Albeit not at Old Trafford but at the Santiago Bernabeu.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Manchester United were in ‘pole position’ to bring Simons to Old Trafford after he finished as the joint-top scorer in the Eredivisie at Van Nistelrooy’s PSV Eindhoven in 2022/23.
Manchester United wanted Xavi Simons
Erik ten Hag was ‘really keen’. His hopes went up in smoke, however, after Paris Saint-Germain triggered the buy-back clause in Simons’ contract and farmed him out on loan to Leipzig instead.
And the irony will not be lost on United supporters that, as Ten Hag’s frontline continues to misfire like a Storm Trooper at a shooting range, Simons has blossomed into arguably the Bundesliga’s stand-out player, 15 goal contributions to his name after just 25 appearances.
“I always tell Xavi that, one day, he will become a Real Madrid player. He has to get used to that!,” Van Nistelrooy, who left Man United for Los Blancos back in 2006, tells Voetbal International.
“I think Xavi belongs at Real Madrid. His destiny is there (in the Spanish capital).
“The greatest talents in the world are currently playing at Real. (Jude) Bellingham, Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr, (Eduardo) Camavinga, (Aurelien) Tchouameni. (Kylian) Mbappe may be added to that. Xavi is also included.
“Xavi certainly has the drive, the mindset and the qualities to make it.”
PSG star ‘destined’ to join Real Madrid
Simons wears ‘Xavi’ on the back of his shirt these days but plays more like the Barcelona icon’s former Camp Nou team-mates Andres Iniesta or Lionel Messi, breaking the lines, dancing through tackles and leaving goalkeepers grasping at thin air.
“Is an outstanding player with a lot of quality and a great future,” Leipzig boss Marco Rose tells BuliNews. “As he gains experience and stays fit, he could become even more of a complete package.
“He is already an excellent player.”
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