Tottenham: Xavi Simons gets final chance to find form ahead of brutal run | OneFootball

With games against Manchester United, Arsenal and PSG looming, Spurs need £52m signing to step up on a big night against Copenhagen

Coming in between Premier League showdowns with Chelsea and Manchester United, it looked an opportunity to secure a straightforward win and move on to bigger things.

Now, though, it feels like a huge night for Thomas Frank. After Saturday's dismal 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, it is not just about the result. Spurs must win and win well.

There are times in the season when scrappy, narrow wins, perhaps via a set-piece goal or two, are more than acceptable. That has been the story for Spurs for large periods of this campaign.

Simons struggled again against Chelsea on Saturday

REUTERS

However, against a team that sit fourth in the Danish league and 32nd in the Champions League table, Spurs must prove they can find an attacking spark that has been far too rare this season.

At the 13th time of asking, Frank could really do with Xavi Simons showing why the club spent £52million on him in the summer.

In his dozen appearances for Spurs to date, Simons is yet to score and his sole assist came from a corner he took on debut.

There was a bright cameo against Brighton and a better showing in a defeat to Newcastle, but those glimpses are not enough for a player of Simons' ability.

In his defence there are some mitigating circumstances. Simons is adjusting to life in a new country and has been thrown into a team with struggles well beyond just his own.

The adaptation will surely come, but for now the speed of the Premier League has been too much for him.

“He’s getting into the right areas and now it’s just the last decisive pass and action that can make the difference," Frank said last week.

“I think his fitness is growing, his intensity is growing. He’s come to a country where you need to train with high intensity. It’s a league which plays with high intensity, and I’m asking him to work harder."

Simons will look better when he has the likes of Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski around him, but Spurs do not have that luxury at the moment.

Simons must use the Copenhagen game to build some confidence again

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Frank needs one of his creative talents to step up and grab responsibility for helping to turn the team's fortunes around and for all the wider factors that are play, Simons can do more.

So often it has been the basics letting him down. Passes have not been weighted well, he has made poor overlapping runs and the decision-making has been off.

In other circumstances, there would be a strong argument for dropping Simons and taking him out of the firing line. He could be given minutes off the bench to build some momentum without the same level of scrutiny.

However, Frank is short of options and so has little choice but to hope he can play Simons into form.

A slower paced match against Copenhagen should suit Simons and give him that extra second on the ball to make an impact.

The Dutchman must use this occasion to find some confidence again ahead of a brutal run of fixtures for Spurs, who face Manchester United, Arsenal and PSG in their next three matches.

A wider, blunt analysis of Spurs' current attacking contingent leads to the conclusion that the quality overall is not there. Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel have potential but are not consistent enough, while Richarlison cannot be relied on as a regular source of goals.

They all feel like streaky players, particularly Richarlison, and so a strong showing against Copenhagen could finally spark some life into a misfiring frontline.

Simons, though, is one of the few with the ability to transform the attack. He needs to playing his part in getting the team back on track.