The next Paul Gascoigne could finally end Simons' Spurs career

With a third Tottenham Hotspur manager in a row now somewhat overlooking Xavi Simons at Premier League level, questions are beginning to be asked of the Dutchman’s long-term future in north London.

On Sunday afternoon at the Stadium of Light, the 22-year-old wasn’t called upon until the 84th minute, even with Spurs chasing the game, with eyebrows having been raised by Roberto De Zerbi‘s decision to leave the playmaker out of his first starting lineup.

Simons, signed for £52m from RB Leipzig, had also been omitted from Igor Tudor’s side for the clash with Nottingham Forest prior to the international break, having now started just 17 league games all season.

Having not started any of the last four in the top-flight, he has been firmly shunted down the attacking pecking order, now in danger of falling into the same territory as Spurs’ other marquee signings.

How Simons compares to Tottenham’s most expensive signings

There has long been an appetite for greater investment at N17, particularly during Daniel Levy’s time at the helm, yet there is a feeling that when the Lilywhites do spend big, it doesn’t always translate to on-field success.

Tottenham’s most expensive signings of all time

A detailed look at Spurs’ 10 most expensive signings of all time.

Simons, the fifth most expensive signing ever at Spurs, has provided just four goals and five assists in his first 39 games in all competitions, his solitary league goal having come against Brentford back in early December.

The man directly above him on the list, Mohammed Kudus, has endured his own frustrating debut campaign at the club, albeit due to injury, with the Ghanaian looking set to miss the remainder of the season following a recent setback in his recovery.

As for the player in third, Richarlison, the mercurial Brazilian does lead the way as Tottenham’s top scorer in 2025/26, although a total tally of 25 league goals in his four seasons in the capital makes for poor reading for a supposedly ‘Premier League-proven’ centre-forward.

The ex-Everton striker has at least stayed the course, in contrast to 2019 arrival, Tanguy Ndombele, the £62.8m midfielder scoring and assisting just 19 goals in 91 games, prior to leaving on a free transfer in the summer of 2024 after a string of loan spells.

Simons – and current club-record signing, Dominic Solanke – look on course for a similar trajectory on current evidence, with it likely to be an intriguing summer under De Zerbi, as he looks to take this struggling team forward.

The next Paul Gascoigne could be Simons’ replacement at Spurs

Much will depend on whether Spurs survive or not come May, but if there is to be any sense of optimism heading into next term, it may well rest on the club’s exciting core of youngsters.

That includes those already in north London, such as Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall, as well as those currently out on loan, in the form of Luka Vuskovic and Mikey Moore.

In Moore’s case, the 18-year-old has only recently revealed that he is keen to return to his parent club this summer, following a stellar season on loan at Glasgow Rangers, having played a vital role in the club’s title push.

Moore vs Simons – 25/26 League stats
Moore	Stat	Simons
28	Games	26
6	Goals	1
298	Mins per goal	1616
6	Big chances missed	1
2	Assists	4
7	Big chances created	6
1.2	Key passes*	1.2
79%	Pass accuracy*	82%
1.4	Succ. dribbles*	1.0
11.4	Ball lost*	11.0

On six Premiership goals for the campaign, all of which have come since Danny Rohl replaced Russell Martin in the Ibrox dugout, the teenager is earning rave reviews right now, having started the last nine league games for the Light Blues.

That included a particularly dazzling display in the Old Firm derby last month, with Moore at his breathtaking best in the first half, jinking his way past the Celtic backline time and again, tormenting opposition right-back, Julian Araujo. He had also previously scored in the same fixture back in January.

There is a balletic brilliance to his game that has earned comparisons to a man of both Rangers and Tottenham fame, in the form of Paul Gascoigne, with ex-Spurs striker Jermain Defoe having said as much during Moore’s academy days:

“It’s a big statement, but he reminds me of Gazza a little bit, the way he glides past people, it’s easy and he’s doing it at 15.”

There is a fearlessness to Moore’s game that certainly mirrors Gazza in his pomp, the one-time England hero notably having scored 33 goals in 112 games for the north London side, playing a vital role in that 1991 FA Cup win.

While a left-winger by trade, Moore has also operated centrally on occasion this season, while Rohl’s oft-deployed 4-2-2-2 formation sees him regularly move inside as almost an inverted winger.

That ability to feature in either role could well see Moore challenge and potentially usurp Simons in the attacking ranks, with De Zerbi likely to relish the prospect to work with such a rising young star at N17.

It was the Italian who gave opportunities to a raft of youngsters back at Brighton and Hove Albion, namely current first-team star Jack Hinshelwood, highlighting why he will have no fear about throwing the Spurs teenager into the mix.

Simons, after struggling under Thomas Frank and falling out of favour under Tudor, isn’t flavour of the month right now, with Moore ready and waiting to take his place next season.