The former La Masia wonderkid says he is happy with his decision to move to Paris
Former Barcelona wonderkid Xavi Simons says he is happy with his decision to follow his own path to Paris Saint-Germain, even if it meant not fulfilling his dream of playing with Lionel Messi.
The 16-year-old former La Masia star opted to make the move to Paris this summer in a move that was seen as a massive coup for the French side.
Named after Barcelona's legendary midfielder, Simons joined the club in 2010 at the age of seven and served as captain for various youth teams during his stay.
However, Simons says that, while he enjoyed the challenge of playing at Barcelona, he is content with his choice to leave the club for seemingly greener pastures.
"If you are young, you really enjoy it. Barcelona is very big, but you don't realise it when you're so young," he told NOS.
"You always have to be yourself and act normally. I think I did that. I'm a very calm guy, but that changes when I'm on the pitch. Then I become a player with a lot of character."
He added: "Messi is the best player in the world, of course. Everyone dreams about playing with him, but sometimes you have to choose another way. I decided to begin a new adventure and I think that's good for my development."
The midfielder signed a three-year deal upon his move to PSG and the hope is that he will graduate to the first team in the coming years.
Until then, he is featuring for the club at the youth level, having played for the club's Under-19s.
"At the beginning it was very tough, because they are physically stronger than me," he said. "But now I'm used to it and I feel good. And I already trained with the first team, I was very happy with that."
Simons was born in Amsterdam and has represented the Netherlands at U15 and U16 levels.
Currently, Simons is preparing for Euro qualifying with the Netherlands U17s, although he could someday be eligible to represent Spain.
"I feel proud when I'm here and I also like to play together with some guys that I normally don't get to play with. It's nice to represent your country," he said.
"I only have a Dutch passport, but I could also request a Spanish one. But that's not an issue right now."
Athenkosi01
353
Ansu Fati is making headlines for Barca first team while Xavi Simons went back to B team in Paris. We are not even bothered by gold diggers departing we have Anssumane Fati
Kg4991
102
For Barca fans: If any player who goes from one club to another is a gold digger then everyone except Messi, Alba, Busquests, Fati and alena in the main team are world class gold diggers. Even the greatest player of Barcelona, Ronaldinho is a gold digger. Everyone are looking for chance to play. People move from clubs for that. Even Neymar left because he felt falling in the shadow of Messi who stood by him at every moment. (Still he is selfish and a gold digger). Just because his name is Xavi doesn’t make him the next Xavi Hernandez. And just because Fati plays beautifully at 16 age doesn’t make him the next Messi. Messi and Ronaldo became who they are now due to dedication and hardworking.
Cöøĺ
52
One day u will realize when Ur career will go to hell that day you will remember why u left Barca🔥🔥🔥🔥