Man Utd boost in pursuit of PSG star as €80m playmaker is keen on Premier League switch

Manchester United have been handed a boost when it comes to landing Xavi Simons as the 21-year-old reportedly doesn’t see his future at PSG.

The Red Devils were among the Premier League sides linked with Simons over the summer, but the PSG star eventually rejoined RB Leipzig on a season-long loan.

Both Man Utd and Arsenal have been linked with a move for the Dutch star in the past and their chances of signing him in 2025 have recently been boosted.

According to Sport Bild , the playmaker is ‘keen’ on a move to the Premier League, although the report doesn’t mention a specific club that he is interested in joining.

The 21-year-old is supposedly valued at around €80m which is more than RB Leipzig can afford and Simons is seemingly now ready to leave PSG on a permanent basis.

Man Utd recently dealt with PSG when landing a deal for Manuel Ugarte and there’s every chance that they will try and strike a deal for Simons next summer.

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Plenty of clubs are interested

While Man Utd’s interest in the PSG star has been well-documented, they certainly aren’t the only club who have expressed an interest in Simons in the past.

Back in June, TEAMtalk exclusively revealed that along with Man Utd, the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund were also keeping an eye on his situation.

Bayern Munich were also in the hunt to sign Simons in the summer, but the Bundesliga giants instead opted to sign Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise.

As it’s now being reported that Simons is keen on a move to the Premier League, the likes of Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea are expected to be at the front of the queue to sign him.

His current deal with PSG runs until the summer of 2027, although with him pushing for a move, a permanent sale seems like it could be on the cards ahead of next summer.

RB Leipzig would like to keep Simons

While the finances involved in a permanent move to RB Leipzig would make things tricky, the Bundesliga club are keen to sign Simons themselves on a permanent basis.

He impressed while on loan with the club last season as he scored eight goals and provided 11 assists in the Bundesliga. The 21-year-old has also started the new campaign well as he assisted Antonio Nusa’s winning goal against VfL Bochum.

When discussing the potential permanent transfer of Simons to RB Leipzig, managing director Oliver Mintzlaff told reporters: “Our management has to negotiate that with PSG.

“For now, he is on loan. But, of course, our goal is to keep top players like him on a long-term basis. We’ve now shown that it’s possible, even against strong competition.

“[Benjamin] Sesko had substantial offers, including from the Premier League, but he chose to stay with us and even extended his contract.”

RB Leipzig’s record signing is currently Lois Openda, who cost the club around £38m in 2o23. Given they would have to pay around double that amount for Simons, it stands to reason that they could struggle to get that deal over the line.

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Would Simons be a good fit at Old Trafford?

One of the biggest strengths of Simons’ game is just how versatile he is. Capable of playing off either flank, as a number 10, a number eight or as a second striker, he would be of great use to a side like Man Utd.

Under the new ownership, they have targeted young and upcoming players and someone like Simons would certainly fit into that criteria.

In the Bundesliga last season, the Dutch playmaker averaged a goal contribution every 140 minutes. For context, Bruno Fernandes averaged a goal contribution every 173 minutes in the Premier League last season.

With Erik ten Hag at the helm, the Red Devils do have a number of Dutch and former Eredivisie players at the club and Simons would certainly fit into that criteria too.

During Euro 2024, Ten Hag even praised Simons for his impressive performance against England: “I enjoyed Xavi Simons in that game (against England).

“The drive he has, the passion with which he conquers balls and recognises situations are top.

“His enormous drive as well. That is almost un-Dutch. I think you can see that he was trained abroad. He almost has a southern European doggedness in his game.”