Neymar's 'little brother' Xavi Simons could disrupt Chelsea flow in Cole Palmer comparison

The 2025/26 Premier League title race could be entirely different to the walkover that was last season when all Liverpool had to be was marginally better than the rest.

Chelsea left it late to confirm their status in the Champions League, however, few teams will be going into the new season with as much confidence after the two trophies that were added to the Stamford Bridge trophy cabinet. The additions of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro also give Enzo Maresca an edge to his forward line that was missing on too many occasions last season.

There isn’t a shortage of players to supply the ammunition, however, this hasn’t stopped the Blues from making a move for RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons. Incredibly, the Netherlands international is still only 22 despite having a CV that includes Barcelona, Paris Saint Germain, PSV Eindhoven and Leipzig. What the playmaker needs is a place he can call home after spending two seasons in the Bundesliga.

Chelsea eye deal for playmaker Xavi Simons

According to various reports, Carney Chukwuemeka could be a makeweight as part of a £60m deal to sign Simons. With 43 goals and 34 assists in his last three seasons, there is no doubting his ability, but do Chelsea actually need him or are they in danger or drifting back into old habits just when it looked like some semblance of order was returning to their recruitment?

There is never a truer saying than “too many cooks spoil the broth” and Chelsea’s current squad having nine players already who play in the same roles as Simons suggests that they should clear the decks before any more additions are made. Most notably, Simons likes to be the main man, the fulcrum of his team’s attack and he just won’t get that opportunity with Enzo Fernandez dominant centrally and Cole Palmer being the man that his teammates look to wherever he is.

Simons is an elite level operator, and he would be a perfect replacement for Palmer, but having the two in the same team might see both of them fighting for the same ball. If Maresca wanted to play with two number 10s behind a central striker it might work although the sheer quantity of wingers in the squad make this an almost impossibility on a week to week basis.

Xavi Simons v Cole Palmer - who comes out on top?

In a head to head on Data MB, there is one metric where Simons bests Palmer, and that’s carrying the ball which could be argued is one of the least important qualities for an attacking midfielder when expected goals and assists, key passes and crosses are also considered. All of which Palmer is better at than Simons.

To contradict the above cliche, a manager can never have too many good players at their disposal and Simons has learned from the best during his apprenticeship at PSG, via The Guardian: “I trained with those guys every day, went to games, saw how they behaved off the pitch and interacted with fans. I’ve learned so much. People might think: ‘Xavi hasn’t played much at PSG’ but what do people expect: Messi and Neymar were ahead of me in the pecking order.

“Neymar knew me from his time in Barcelona, he helped me and protected me. I was like a little brother to him. We’re still in touch. People have a certain image of Neymar, but they only see the footballer. Off the pitch he is a very good person.”

On paper, having Simons and Palmer in the same team looks great, but after winning the Europa Conference League and Club World Cup with a well balance team, ripping up a successful game plan for a shiny new toy just doesn’t make sense.