Xavi Simons has found a place in Thomas Frank’s starting Tottenham XI in the recent fixtures.
It has been well-documented that Tottenham Hotspur have struggled scoring goals this season. Dominic Solanke’s injury absence for months has not helped the cause. He was the second-highest goalscorer behind Brennan Johnson last term, so the Englishman’s unavailability was also going to hurt Spurs.
As a result, Thomas Frank has had to rely on Richarlison and Randal Kolo Muani for goals. Richarlison’s biggest problem has been his inconsistency, mainly due to injury problems. Fortunately, he has managed to keep himself fit since the start of pre-season, resulting in him reaping rich rewards.
After starting the season with a bang against Burnley on the opening weekend, the Brazilian took some games before getting on the scoresheet again. In recent weeks, Richarlison has managed to get back into the groove, netting four goals in the last seven games.
Richarlison is overperforming his xG
The 28-year-old may have netted just seven goals in all competitions, but interestingly, he is one of the most clinical forwards in the Premier League this season. In reality, Richarlison has been overperforming his xG. The South American has overperformed his expected goals stat in the Premier League by +2.60.
That is quite a remarkable stat for someone like Richarlison, who has still not been rated by the majority of the fans. Ideally, this suggests the Tottenham striker has also been more clinical than Manchester City’s Erling Haaland in terms of finishing the chances that have been created. In complete contrast to Manchester City, Spurs have not been creating lots of chances for the forwards in the final third, resulting in the likes of Richarlison and Kolo Muani to feed on scraps.
But, Richarlison, in particular, could score a lot more for the Lilywhites if their marquee summer signing steps up.
Xavi Simons must step up in terms of chance creation
After being demoted to the bench for four games, Xavi Simons was restored to the starting XI against Brentford. Since then, Tottenham have been flying high, with the Dutch talent playing a key role as a creator, goal-scoring threat and a more dynamic presence in the final third, exactly what the team has been lacking and the fans have been craving to watch. Xavi Simons can unlock Richarlison’s true potential if he starts performing on that one key metric.
Xavi Simons broke his Tottenham duck with a fine solo goal in the 2-0 win over Brentford, whilst also assisting Richarlison in that game. He scored again in midweek in the 3-0 win over Slavia Praha in the Champions League. However, it looks like the 22-year-old is not creating enough big chances for the forwards.
According to most big chances created from open play in the Premier League stat shared by Squawka on X, Jeremy Doku of Man City tops the charts with nine. He is followed by his City teammate Rayan Cherki with six, with Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo and Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes delivering the same numbers. Surprisingly, there is no mention of Simons in the top 10.
Simons was chiefly signed to fill the void created by playmaker James Maddison’s serious knee injury, but sadly, he hasn’t lived up to the lofty expectations of the club and fans alike. After a slow start, the Netherlands international has finally exploded into life at the club, with fans hoping to see him kick on from here.
If the Spurs No.7 can start creating big chances, we’d perhaps see Richarlison score a lot more goals and make Frank’s team more of a threat going forward.
