To open the door for a Premier League move? Xavi Simons set to stay at RB Leipzig

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Deal imminent 

“I will make my decision after the Euros,” Xavi Simons said when asked about his future at the European Championships this summer. Ultimately, the decision came down to two clubs for the Dutch playmaker. Should he remain at RB Leipzig for one more year or continue his career at Bayern Munich? Both clubs made enticing offers for the talented midfielder, who is still under contract at Paris Saint-Germain until 2027. Bayern offered a loan deal with an option to buy, and Leipzig offered another straight-up loan deal. And it now appears we have a decision. 

As reported by multiple outlets in Germany, Simons is now poised to return to Leipzig on loan for one more season. Transfermarkt understands that even though there is still some work to be done, a deal to keep Simons with the Red Bulls is now advanced. Bayern Munich, in fact, have already moved their attention away from Simons and instead are trying to win the race to sign French attacking midfielder Désiré Doué from Stade Rennais. 

How did Leipzig win the race for Simons? There are multiple factors. At first glance, it appears odd that PSG are willing to once again loan out a player that could help replace superstar Kylian Mbappé. Indeed, there is no doubt that Simons and PSG are at odds with one another, and another loan might just buy the French giants some time to fix that relationship. 

The other factor is Simons himself. The playmaker wants to keep his options open for the 2025/26 season. A loan-to-buy move to Bayern would have cemented his future for the next few years. By staying at Leipzig, Simons will have multiple options next summer, including a move to the Premier League. One of the clubs interested in Simons this summer had been Manchester United. But the Red Devils won’t be alone in their interest in Simons. Indeed, Simons recently switched agencies and is now represented by the English agent Darren Dein to help facilitate a potential transfer to the Premier League in 2025.

There is also no doubt that staying at Leipzig for now would help Simons’ development immensely. Simons had a breakout year for the Bundesliga club last season, scoring ten goals and 15 assists in 43 games across all competitions. Simons combined eight goals and 13 assists in 32, which ranked him 12th overall in the Bundesliga last season. Simons also displayed his playmaking ability with 43 smart passes, which ranked him second in the Bundesliga behind Florian Wirtz. Simons then followed this up with one goal and three assists at Euro 2024, helping the Netherlands reach the semifinal of the tournament. 

All those numbers are impressive. At the same time, there has also been a sense that Simons is far from the finished product. With that in mind, RB Leipzig are the perfect club to help him with that development for another season. The Simons team will have also noticed that the city rolled out the red carpet for him while playing with the Netherlands against France at Euro 2024. RB Leipzig had posters throughout the city with Simons’ face on it. Often, details decide a transfer, and who knows, maybe that support helped Leipzig get this deal across the line.