Xavi Simons had a difficult start to life with Tottenham Hotspur, because despite being a 60 million euro transfer and a superstar in the Bundesliga for RB Leipzig while competing for Champions League places and Bundesliga Player of the Season honors, he had trouble getting into a very weak Spurs starting lineup due to the stubborness and horrendous management of Thomas Frank.
The Danish coach was so inept that he even benched Simons in a North London Derby that the club were totally blown out in. Frank neglected Simons and played the most cowardly football Tottenham have ever seen, negating the unique threat that is the Dutch midfielder.
Even though an ACL tear robbed him of truly finishing the season strong, Simons still looked light years better in that brief time under Roberto De Zerbi. The Italian manager had Simons playing more freely, getting the ball into better positions, and, most importantly, actually starting and playing an important role for the Lilywhites.
De Zerbi has transformed Spurs
Xavi Simons has been singing the praises of De Zerbi since the Italian coach came to N17, and especially with all the big moves the former Brighton manager is sanctioning, Spurs supporters are starting to say all those things emphatically about RDZ, too.
In a recent interview with Matt Barlow of the Daily Mail, Simons confirmed how much things have changed and how happy he is to be working with Roberto De Zerbi, "I started to find my flow with him, the way he wants to play football. If I'm honest with you, from the day he came in, he changed the mentality of the club with the way he transmits what he wants. Something was different from the first day. New energy, new boost. Sometimes in bad situations you only need a small change to make a massive difference and that small change was Roberto. When he was a player, he played as a No 10, like me. He knows how I feel in certain situations. It's true, I need that kind of freedom to feel good about my game. He gave me confidence and that's what you need as a player. When you don't feel confidence or trust from the manager, it's a little bit difficult. From day one, he gave that to the whole team, especially to me.”
These remarks are similar to what Simons had said about his new coach near the end of the 2025/26 season, but they ring even more true today after Spurs not only survived the Premier League relegation battle, but also strengthened their midfield this summer with two 185 million pound, combined, signings. De Zerbi knows what it is like to give players confidence, he sees the game the players do, and he has changed hte mentality of this club, giving them confidence and trust. And anyone can see that plainly.
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