Xavi Simons breaks silence on Barcelona exit: ‘Stories came out that hurt me, they didn’t believe in me’ | OneFootball

Former Barcelona academy midfielder Xavi Simons has spoken publicly about his controversial departure from the club in 2019, insisting that his decision to join PSG was driven by a lack of faith from Barcelona rather than financial reasons.

Speaking to the media ahead of his second season with Tottenham Hotspur, the Dutch international revealed that the club made it clear he was not part of their long-term plans.

Simons: ‘Barcelona did not believe in me’

Simons, who spent almost a decade in La Masia and was regarded as one of Barcelona’s brightest academy prospects, explained why he chose to leave for PSG at the age of 16.

“It was clear from the beginning that they did not believe in me. At the time I decided not to speak because I was focused only on the pitch,” he said, as quoted by SPORT.

“They told me: ‘We have other players that we believe in, we want to offer you a contract, but you are not one of the players who is really part of the project.'”

An eight-year-old Xavi Simons at La Masia. (Photo by Jasper Juinen/Getty Images)

His departure generated significant debate, with many believing that financial considerations had been the deciding factor.

Simons admitted that the criticism surrounding his exit affected both him and his family, as he said:

“For me, the decision was clear. At that time people did not know what had really happened behind all of this; they only had an opinion based on what they had heard, because stories came out saying that I was leaving for money.”

Continuing, he added: “Did that hurt me? Of course. I had been there my whole life, I went through different situations, I experienced everything there, my entire childhood was spent at that club.

“I love Barcelona and that version of events hurt me and it also hurt my family, because it was not true.”

Xavi Simons joined PSG from Barcelona. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Easy decision

Simons reiterated that Barcelona’s preference for other academy players made his decision straightforward.

According to him, PSG offered him the opportunity that the Blaugrana did not.

“The reality was simple: at that moment they preferred other boys. And that was fine for me, because I had PSG, with a really big project, already training at the age of 16 alongside the best players in the world,” he said.

“There was no need to think about it too much: the decision was easy. Barcelona did not believe in me and, for me, the decision was clear.”

Since leaving the club, Simons has been linked with a return to Barcelona on multiple occasions, including last summer, but the move never materialised.