Marco Rose, ahead of RB Leipzig’s Champions League trip to BSC Young Boys on Tuesday night, insisted that summer signing Xavi Simons has barely even scratched the surface of his potential.
A scary thought, indeed.
In six games in all competitions, the Paris Saint-Germain loanee already has seven goal contributions in Leipzig colours; three goals, four assists. And while Simons might not have added to his burgeoning tally as Rose’s side triumphed 3-1 on Swiss soil, another outstanding display – on his Champions League debut no less – provided another harsh reminder of what Manchester United could, and very nearly did, have.
Well, they do say Red Bull gives you wings…
Manchester United wanted Xavi Simons
“(Simons) is an outstanding player with a lot of quality and a great future,” Rose tells BuliNews. “As he gains experience and stays fit, he could become even more of a complete package.
“He’s a good example of the type of football we want to play. He also knows that he still has to learn. That’s a character trait that he can still develop.
“(But) he is already an excellent player – that has to be said!”
Simons, according to Fabrizio Romano, might have been featuring for Manchester United against Bayern Munich tonight had things worked out differently last summer. The Red Devils, Romano explains, were in ‘pole position’ to sign the baby-faced 20-year-old.
That was, however, before Paris Saint-Germain triggered the buy-back clause in his PSV contract and farmed him out to Leipzig instead.
Leipzig’s gain is rather quickly turning into Manchester United’s loss.
Ten Hag misses out
And while Simons may wear his first name on the back of his shirt – named after his father’s beloved Barcelona legend – his balletic ball-carrying and his eye for goal makes the dazzling Dutch international a very different sort of player to one Xavi Hernandez, his game revolving around the creating and the taking of chances rather than setting the tempo and creating the rhythm in a deeper role.
“We just carried on playing our game and got the win that we deserved,” Simons tells the RB Leipzig website following a Champions League win in which another one-time Man United target found the net in Benjamin Sesko.
“I’m really enjoying my football in Leipzig with my teammates. I want to help the team achieve important goals. That’s what I’m here for.”
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