Premier League
Xavi Simons Set For Shock Tottenham Transfer As Spurs Hijack Chelsea Deal
Tottenham are close to finalizing a £51.8 million deal to sign Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig.
Personal terms have been agreed with the attacking midfielder, and he has already undergone a medical.
Barring any last-minute hitches, the deal will be a major boost for Thomas Frank, who is aiming to add an attacking midfielder.
Spurs have suffered injuries to James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski and missed out on Eberechi Eze, who joined Arsenal from Crystal Palace. Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White also signed a new contract.
Chelsea were also interested in Simons but never made a bid for the 22-year-old. There are no indications that the club will disrupt their London rivals by attempting a late swoop for the Netherlands international.
Chelsea is well stocked in attacking midfield despite agreeing a £36m deal for Christopher Nkunku to join Milan.
They are pursuing a £40m deal for Manchester United winger, Alejandro Garnacho and have targets beyond Simons, including Barcelona’s Fermín López. The club’s activity suggests a broader search for attacking reinforcements beyond their initial options.
Spurs have been able to take advantage of Chelsea not firming up their interest. The north London club properly entered the race on Wednesday and has moved quickly to agree terms with Leipzig, who are in a hurry to finalise a deal so they can move for Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott.
Jürgen Klopp, the Red Bull head of global soccer and Elliott’s former manager at Liverpool, is a significant part of that proposed transfer.
Chelsea explored offloading a player to Leipzig as part of any deal for Simons, but that did not appeal to the Bundesliga club. Simons flew to London on Wednesday to discuss a transfer with Spurs.
Simons, who can operate in the middle or on the wings, has been clear about his desire to leave this summer.
He came through Barcelona’s academy before spells at PSV and Paris Saint-Germain, who sold him to Leipzig last January.
