‘Xavi Simons shouldn’t have come’ amid disconnect with Thomas Frank – Ex-Tottenham boss
Xavi Simons has “absolutely no excuse” for not performing at Tottenham unless Thomas Frank wasn’t clear how he planned to use him, says Tim Sherwood.
Simons arrived to much excitement after Tottenham hijacked Chelsea in the summer transfer window, but the early months of his Spurs career have been disappointing.
Tottenham’s 1-0 home loss to Chelsea saw Simons particularly anonymous, and Sherwood feels there is a potential issue with how the Dutchman is being used in Frank‘s set up.
Spurs face Arsenal in the North London derby on Sunday needing a big result, and Simons hasn’t been chosen in the starting XI.
Sherwood says Frank doesn’t play Simons where he wants to be
Speaking about the situation live on Sky Sports Soccer Saturday ahead of the North London derby the following day Sherwood accepted it’s hard to adapt to the English top flight, but claimed Simons shouldn’t have signed if he didn’t like Frank’s plans for him.
The ex-Spurs boss said what needs to happen for an improvement: “Play him where he wants to play. He wants to play as a number 10 and Thomas Frank don’t play him at number 10.
“[Frank] must have told him when he’s come to sign. Xavi Simons shouldn’t have come. If he said ‘I’m gonna play you off the left and you can drift in, or I’ll play you off the right and you can drift into central areas‘, then fine.
“He’s got absolutely no excuse not to deliver when he gets on the ball and he’s got to show more than what he’s shown. I think there’s a lot of onus on him, the reputation, but it’s difficult to adjust to a different country and adjust to the Premier League.”
Simons can re-write Tottenham story off the bench
Simons and Frank are in a similar boat for the trip to the Emirates in that both have their critics so far this term and could completely change the tune on themselves with impressive returns at their rivals.
The Dane faces the most immediate pressure if Tottenham‘s form continues to be disappointing, but his misfiring summer recruit really needs a spark.
If Simons is introduced off the bench against Mikel Arteta’s league leaders and scores his first goal for the club then it would be the perfect way to finally announce himself properly.
Despite results being increasingly inconsistent Spurs have been able maintain a decent position in the league, but entering the derby ninth after the rest of the weekend’s action they are starting to sink, and fans don’t want a repeat of last season.
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