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Tottenham Hotspur finally saw one of their key attacking players deliver when it mattered, and the performance has not gone unnoticed.
There is no denying that Tottenham Hotspur’s Xavi Simons was the star of the show for the Lilywhites in their last encounter with Brighton and Hove Albion.
The Dutchman finally delivered a performance worthy of the hefty £55 million fee Spurs paid in the summer, pulling the strings in attack and registering a goal and an assist in a display he will hope silences his critics.
Simons had received plenty of stick this season for his poor form from Dutch legends, including Rafael van der Vaart, who believes that he has not been playing to his full potential.
Those concerns were also echoed by new head coach Roberto De Zerbi, who challenged Simons to add more goals and assists to his game ahead of the Brighton clash, following the midfielder’s return of just one goal in 26 appearances.
Tottenham star Xavi Simons earns Premier League Team of the Week spot
Simons responded positively to his manager’s call, delivering his best Premier League performance of the season, assisting Pedro Porro’s opener before scoring what looked set to be the winner, only for Georginio Rutter’s equaliser to ensure the spoils were shared.
The Dutchman’s effort has now received further recognition, with Troy Deeney including him in his Gameweek 33 Team of the Week.
Writing in his column for BBC Sport, Deeney addressed Simons’ performance, while also touching on his celebration and Tottenham’s struggles.
“I did not like the celebration when he scored against Brighton – I thought it was a bit too much, a bit Instagrammy. But Spurs have been poor of late and his quality and the X-factor he showed with the assist and goal could be how they stay up.
“I do not think they will stay up – I am really worried for them, but they need him to have five more games like that and that will give them the best chance. Maybe if the defenders started to defend they would have won the game instead of drawing it.”
Xavi Simons form gives Spurs survival hope
Tottenham will certainly be pleased to see Simons hit form at this stage of the season, with their fight for survival heating up.
West Ham United drew with Crystal Palace, a result that bodes well for Tottenham, who can move out of the relegation places with a victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers next gameweek.
This scenario, however, remains dependent on the Hammers losing their own game or potentially drawing, given the superior goal difference Spurs possess
For sure, if Simons can turn up with a similar display, he could well be the talismanic figure who bails Spurs out of what has been an abysmal season.
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