90min
·31 January 2025
90min
·31 January 2025
A trio of Premier League clubs are monitoring the situation of RB Leipzig attacking midfielder Xavi Simons, according to a report in Germany.
The Dutch international left Barcelona's academy to join Paris Saint-Germain's equivalent in 2019. Simons only ever made 11 senior appearances for the French giants and has spent the past 18 months on loan at Leipzig. The Bundesliga outfit made their talismanic playmaker a permanent player on Thursday.
Later that very same day, BILD's head of football Christian Falk claimed that Leipzig are willing to sell their latest acquisition.
According to the German publication, Marco Rose's side would be prepared to accept an offer in the region of €70-80m, with Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City all listed as interested parties.
Leipzig's deal with PSG was reportedly worth an initial €50m (£41.8m) with add-ons that could take the final transfer fee to around €75-80m.
Xavi Simons missed two months of the season with a serious ankle injury but has quickly rediscovered his best form / Maja Hitij/GettyImages
Manchester United were linked with a move for Simons back in the summer after the Netherlands international intermittently flickered into life during the European Championships. The 21-year-old finished the tournament with four direct goal contributions - teeing up three before opening the scoring in a semi-final defeat to England - a tally which only two players could better.
Liverpool have adopted a cautious approach during the first two transfer windows under Arne Slot, but the Dutch head coach - who was on the wrong side of Simons' creative edge during their shared years in the Eredivisie - has revealed that the club are "definitely working on strengthening in the summer".
Manchester City have already added one of the Bundesliga's finest forwards to their ranks this month, splashing £59m to prise Omar Marmoush away from Eintracht Frankfurt. Pep Guardiola has no intention of quashing this spending spree, but whether the reigning English champions will be compelled to bolster a position which has just been strengthened again in the summer remains to be seen.