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BLESSED with an incredible talent at just 13, the burden of expectation on the shoulders of Xavi Simons was huge.He was the great hope at Barcelona, where he honed his skills at La Masia.
Xavi Simons has starred for PSV this campaign with 22 goals in all competitionsCredit: Getty
Simons was hailed as a wonderkid at Barcelona aged just eightCredit: Getty Images – Getty
However, the lure of PSG and opportunity for first team football was too much to refuse – and the midfield playmaker tried his hand in France.
After one season in Ligue 1, Simons moved again – this time back to his homeland with PSV.
Under the tutelage of ex-manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, the wonderkid, 20, has flourished and is living up to the hype that originally surrounded him.
In the campaign just gone, he scored 22 goals in all competitions.
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Now, he could be set for another big-money move – with Premier League clubs circling.
‘Golden Curls’
Simons began his football education at Barcelona, when he was just seven.
The Catalans saw him as their greatest prospect since Lionel Messi, and fought off teams including Chelsea who tried to poach the superstar-in-waiting.
One year, at U14 level, he captained a youth side that won all 25 games – scoring 164 times and conceding just 14.
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Golden Curls, as he was affectionally nicknamed, even got to meet his idol and namesake, Xavi Hernandez.
He said: “I was with the physio when Xavi came over.
“When I told him that my name was also Xavi, he laughed. It was funny. He’s my idol.
“I know it’s difficult but I will do everything to make it.”
But it wasn’t to be at Barcelona.
At eight-years-old, Simons was the star of the Catalans’ youth teamCredit: Getty Images – Getty
The midfielder idolised his namesake XaviCredit: Getty Images – Getty
PSG came calling
The LaLiga giants tried desperately to convince Simons his exciting future belonged at the Camp Nou.
However, with his path to the first team blocked, he snubbed a new contract at 16, on the advice of his former agent Mino Raiola.
Instead, an inviting offer from PSG – reportedly worth £1million-per-year – was enough to take him to the Parc des Princes.
As the man himself explained: “Everyone dreams of playing with Messi, but sometimes there is another way.
“I decided to try another adventure – and I think that this is good for my development.”
Little known at the time, Lionel Messi would end up following Simons to Paris two years later.
But his popularity off the pitch for a boy so young was astonishing – as the hype surrounding the Amsterdam-born youngster grew.
By the time he was 16, and this is before he’d even made his professional debut, Simons boasted a remarkable two million followers on Instagram.
While Nike also offered him a bumper sponsorship deal. The world was his oyster.
In 2019, Simons took his talents to PSGCredit: Refer to Caption
Neymar became one of his team-mates, but Simons struggled to get a look-inCredit: Refer to Caption
Again, he would cut a frustrated figure – with reports that he wasn’t progressing as swiftly as was hoped and chances limited.
Talk of a return to Spain was quashed – with the media in Barcelona insisting his former club were not interested in taking up the option of resigning him with their buy-back clause based on his lack of development.
Truth was he barely got a game. In his three years, he appeared just 11 times.
And when he did, luck would have it that he would become the fall guy in defeat – most notably missing a penalty in a shootout defeat to Nice in the last 16 of the Coupe de France.
Simons took the opportunity to rebuild his career closer to home.
Return to Holland
Last year, PSV brought Simons back home.
Initial reports suggested the French giants weren’t willing to let him go, beyond a loan deal.
When a buy-back clause was inserted, that sweetened the transfer and made the move a permanent one.
PSV’s new boss Ruud Van Nistelrooy was desperate to work with the boy wonder, seeing more of a forward in him than a midfielder. And he was right.
In his first four games in the Eredivisie playing in a more advanced position, he netted six times – prompting a compliment from his manager.
“I’m not even surprised. Before we put him on, I had already seen a lot of him,” Van Nistelrooy told ESPN.
“I saw that his potential is great and fantastic. I also knew that his character is well constructed. And if you train well and do your job well, you can take big steps. He does that.”
Xavi Simons has been capped at youth levelCredit: Getty – Contributor
This season, Simons has had a hand in more goals than other player under 21 in Europe’s top six leaguesCredit: Getty
Many have tipped Simons to be Holland’s next huge starCredit: Getty
It’s been rumoured that PSG want to exercise their buy-back clause, although Simons isn’t entertaining that thought.
“There’s a clause in my contract: if I want to go to PSG at the end of the season, I can do that for a certain amount,” he admitted.
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“To be honest, it’s not in my head to leave PSV. I feel good here and I’ve just settled in. I think you can see that on the field.”
Simons has come of age – just at the right time. Next up, a big move and a shot at the Ballon d’Or? Don’t count against it. More

TOTTENHAM’s search for a new manager is about to end.Spurs are set to announce Celtic’s Ange Postecoglou as their new boss as early as next week.
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou is set to be confirmed as Tottenham bossCredit: Getty
When he was five, Postecoglou emigrated to Australia
The Greek-born, Aussie-raised coach, 57, grew up in Melbourne, where he developed a love of the beautiful game.
It was at South Melbourne Hellas, a club set up for Greek immigrants in the 1950s, where he would meet legend Ferenc Puskas, who managed the side from 1989-1992.
They would form a close bond, where Ange would act as interpreter for the Hungarian in return for his fountain of football knowledge.
Postecoglou would become a boss in his own right and eventually coach the Australian national team.
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Last year, behind-the-scenes footage emerged of the ex-Socceroos coach losing his temper with his players, which should act as a warning to Harry Kane and Co.
Number 24
Raised in the Athens suburbs, Ange’s dad Dimitris lost his business following the 1967 Greek military coup, so the family emigrated to Australia in 1970 by boat.
“I just can’t believe what my parents went through,” he said.
“What they would have gone through to take a young family halfway round the world, on a ship that takes us 30 days, to a country where they don’t speak the language, they don’t know a soul, they don’t have a house, they don’t have jobs.
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“People say they go to another country for a better life. My parents did not have a better life, they went to Australia to provide opportunities for me to have a better life.”
The future football manager was just five when he posed for a photo holding up immigration number 24, giving off a steely stare that would later be used in full force to get the best out of team-mates and teams.
It was his dad who would give Ange his first taste of football, which was something of a release for the old man who was out early and home late because of work commitments.
Sundays were dedicated to church in the mornings, followed by a South Melbourne Hellas match in the afternoon.
Football legend Ferenc Puskas became Postecoglou’s mentor at South Melbourne Hellas
A fine tutor
Ange joined semi-pro Hellas, who are now known as South Melbourne FC, when he was nine.
“As a kid, I just wanted to fit in, I didn’t necessarily like the fact I came from another country and had a really long surname that nobody could get their mouth around. For a young boy the best way to fit in was sport,” Postecoglou said.
He rose through the youth ranks to play in the 1984 side that won the National Soccer League. Something he would achieve again in 1991, but under a more inspiring and pioneering manager.
Between 1989-1992, Ange was coached by football’s first international superstar, Ferenc Puskas. He was skipper and left-back, Puskas his mentor.
Puskas was a pioneer in Australia and showed them how to play football
Puskas would lead South Melbourne Hellas to National Soccer League success
The Galloping Major played an attacking 4-3-3 formation – with the full-backs supporting the wingers. Never before seen in Australia.
Puskas couldn’t speak English, but was fluent in Greek following spells at Panathinaikos and AEK Athens.
That allowed Greek-speaking Ange to be the chief communicator on and off the pitch.
They soon became firm friends, as Ange would chauffeur Puskas around town and the two would discuss football for hours.
Ange said of Puskas: “He was just a gentleman. From the moment he wandered through, he was just humble.
“We were constantly pestering him to tell us stories about Real Madrid, what he did at Hampden, what he did at Wembley.
“He was forever downplaying everything and it just showed you the greatness of the man was his humility in dealing with people.
“I was lucky because when he came to Australia his English wasn’t great, but he had coached Panathinaikos to a European Cup final, so his Greek was decent and I acted almost as an interpreter.
“I used to pick him up from his house and drive him to training in my crappy old car, which I was embarrassed about.”
Destined for management
Ange was just 27 when he had to retire with a knee injury.
Postecoglou would return to South Melbourne as coach and win two national championshipsCredit: Getty Images – Getty
When Postecoglou was left unemployed he leaned on his wife Georgia for help and moved in with his mother-in-lawCredit: Getty
Three years later, he would return to South Melbourne as a coach and win two national championships from 1996-2000
But a more senior role with Australia’s youth sides would nearly put a nail in the coffin of his career.
An on-air bust-up with football pundit Craig Foster during an interview on Aussie TV left a sour taste in the mouth.
He was sacked from coaching Australia’s U20s in 2007, and forced to take on a role at third division Greek club Panachaiki to continue his management journey, only to return to Australia in 2008.
He had nothing, and had to move in with wife Georgia and his mother-in-law for eight months to get by.
His next job at Brisbane Roar would define him.
Going on to success
Many believe that the brand of football Brisbane played during Ange’s tenure between 2009-2012 was the best ever seen by an Australian club side.
Fast, ferocious, possession-based, he was inspired to use the same 4-3-3 formation Puskas had taught him.
After winning back-to-back league titles in 2011 and 2012, he moved to Melbourne Victory and after a year was appointed as Socceroos boss.
Postecoglou coached the Socceroos at the 2014 World Cup
Back-to-back league titles in Scotland have cemented Postecoglou’s reputationCredit: Getty
They competed in the 2014 World Cup, won the 2015 Asian Cup, and qualified for another World Cup in 2018.
A month after securing qualification, Ange resigned and accepted a job in Japan with Yokohama Marinos.
He would lead the club to their first J-League title in 15 years in 2019, before Celtic brought him to Scotland in 2021.
Postecoglou would wrestle the Scottish Premiership back from fierce rivals Rangers in his first season, before winning it again this year – adding two League Cups to the Hoops’ trophy room in his two years in Glasgow.
However, a fiery temper that could install fear into his players to perform better was uncovered last year.
Filled with rage
In a clip from a Paramount Australia documentary about Postecoglou’s time in charge of the Socceroos, a more prickly side became evident.
He was filmed showing his players a soft goal they conceded from a set-piece on a screen during a team meeting.
He begins: “We’ve got to be better than this, we must be better, that’s just careless.
“And not only that, there’s one, two, three… we cannot f***ing concede there.
“There’s f***ing got to be a reaction there.”
As he vented his fury, he punched the screen with his hand.
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Tottenham’s stars should know that Postecoglou doesn’t suffer fools gladlyCredit: Getty
“Someone!” he continued, “f***’s sake!”
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DIAMONDS are Georgina Rodriguez’s best friend.The Spanish beauty, 29, better known as the partner of Cristiano Ronaldo, has amassed a jewellery collection that would make her the envy of Wags all over the world.
Georgina Rodriguez dazzles wearing a £1million Chopard necklace at CannesCredit: Rex
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Wag Rodriguez boasts a jewellery collection worth around £4mCredit: Getty
On Thursday, the former Gucci shop assistant arrived at the Cannes Film Festival, where she showed off an incredible £1million Chopard necklace.
Rodriguez beamed with elegance as she wore the piece with a stunning black dress on the red carpet.
Sadly, the item was only loaned to her for the event. But still, her extensive collection features a £600,000 Cartier engagement ring gifted by the Portugal football legend, as well as an amazing diamond suite worn on her Netflix show I Am Georgina.
All in all, SunSport estimates it is worth somewhere in the region of £4million.
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Netflix and spill
On her documentary series, we were given a glimpse into her life and her sparkly accessories.
In the I Am Georgina promo, she shows off an astonishing £2,700,000 diamond suite – with a a stunning necklace, drop earrings, and ring.
Another scene, where Georgina is enjoying a photo shoot, the Instagram beauty is wearing a bracelet that jewellery expert Zak Stone believes to be worth around £1m.
Later on, an enormous sapphire ring said to be valued at £750,000 is seen adorning Georgina’s finger.
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Back in 2021, Ronaldo gifted his beloved an engagement ring said to cost £600,000 from Cartier.
In the promo add for Rodriguez’s Netflix TV show she wears a £2.7m diamond suite
Rodriguez shows off one of her many array of rings
A £750,000 sapphire ring adorns Rodriguez’s fingerCredit: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl53TuQvDrI/?hl=en
No expense is spared when it comes to Rodriguez’s jewellery collection
Cannes regular
It’s at the glitzy Cannes Film Festival, surrounded by Hollywood A-listers, where Georgina has consistently outshone the stars.
As a regular in the South of France, she knows how to cause a stir.
She was spotted wearing hooped earrings that were worth £25,000 last year.
Alongside the earrings, she wore a a 10ct marquise diamond ring on her index finger that Stone says she could have splashed up to £200,000 on, completing a very lavish look.
A few months later, Georgina turned heads at the Venice Film Festival – wearing a chunky statement choker.
Rodriguez stunned fans at the Venice Film Festival in a Pasquale Bruni chokerCredit: Getty
A-list stars can’t compete with Rodriguez’s glam look on the red carpetCredit: Getty
Currently Rodriguez is starring at the Cannes Film FestivalCredit: Rex
Made by Pasquale Bruni, their chokers cost as much as £80,000.
While in 2021, again at the Venice Film Festival, she wore a £78,000 floral Giardini Segreti diamond necklace and earrings.
It is not known if some of these are owned or loaned.
World Cup ready
And it’s just when she’s surrounded by movie stars that Georgina decides to glam up.
At the World Cup in Qatar, she was seen wearing a 40mm Rolex GMT-Master II set in 18k white gold with baguette cut factory diamonds – believed to carry a £400,000 price tag.
She also sported the £600,000 engagement ring while cheering on Ronaldo, and a 10ct diamond ring valued at £300,000, claimed the Mirror.
Georgina was practically dripping in bling with a sparkling necklace, bracelet and a selection of rings estimated to cost £450,000.
Rodriguez’s jewellery ensemble at the World Cup was believed to be worth around £450kCredit: PA
Al-Nassr signing
Making sure she’s dressed to the nines for Ronaldo’s big moments in his career, Georgina dazzled when the family moved to Saudi Arabia in
As Al-Nassr announced their new signing, Georgina looked on in pride as he signed his £175million-per-year contract and settled into her new surroundings.
Again, Italian luxury brand Pasquale Bruni was her go-to. She sported a set of earrings worth more than £40,000 and rings believed to cost £20,000 each.
Then when it came to his unveiling at Al-Nassr’s home stadium Mrsool Park in Riyadh, she added some ornate Pasquale Bruni earrings to that ensemble.
At Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr unveiling, Rodriguez sported Pasquale Bruni earrings
Housed suitably
With such an extensive collection, it has to be suitably stored.
Lucky for Georgina, Ronaldo thought ahead.
He bought her an amazing jewellery box from Louis Vuitton worth a staggering £108,000.
The 4ft 6in Louis Vuitton Malle Vendome boasts eight drawers and a mannequin to store her jewels.
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Georgina showed off her gift on Instagram.
Georgina wrote alongside a photo of two of their four children getting their first glimpse of the gift: ‘I’m speechless, Cristiano.’
A £105k jewellery box from Louis Vuitton houses Rodriguez’s collectionCredit: Instagram @georginagio More