Arsenal are reportedly weighing up a summer swoop for PSV Eindhoven midfielder Xavi Simons, as per the Mirror.
After running his contract down with PSG, the 20-year-old opted to move to the Philips Stadion as a free agent at the beginning of this season. The youngster has enjoyed a stellar debut campaign in the Dutch top-flight this term, scoring 16 goals and notching up eight assists in 32 Eredivisie appearances.
Simons’ excellent displays for PSV have attracted the attention of several big European clubs with Arsenal among those to have registered their interest.
According to the report by the Mirror (via Fichajes), after being impressed by the midfielder’s recent performances, Mikel Arteta has asked Arsenal chief Edu to sign Simons and the Gunners are ‘confident’ that a deal can be done for him this summer to strengthen their engine room.
However, the report claims that securing the 20-year-old’s signature won’t be straightforward for Arsenal as PSG have also been showing an interest in re-signing the midfielder.
Simons to Arsenal
But, Fichajes states that the PSV star is not willing to return to the Parc des Princes as the midfielder feels that he may struggle to find regular game time at PSG. So, this is a big boost for Arsenal in the race to sign Simons.
Simons – valued at around £26m by Transfermarkt – still has more than four years left in his current contract. So, PSV are in no rush to let their star man leave this summer and Arsenal will have to offer a lucrative proposal to persuade the Eredivisie giants to sell.
It has widely been suggested that Arsenal are keen on reinforcing their engine room this summer and they have been linked with numerous options ahead of the summer window. Declan Rice and Moises Caicedo have been mentioned as primary targets but Simons is reportedly on their radar as well.
The youngster is a versatile midfielder – who can play multiple positions across the middle of the park. He is technically sound, can play threading passes between the lines, has the ability to dribble past opposition defenders in tight areas, can create chances for the attackers and also has the efficiency to finish off his chances.
Simons is an extremely talented player and possesses the potential to become a world-class midfielder going forward. So, he would be a shrewd signing for Arsenal if they manage to secure his signature at the end of this season.
