Vitesse 1-1 PSV: Xavi Simons finds it difficult to understand that PSV did not continue after the early goal on a visit to Vitesse. The nineteen-year-old midfielder, who is now joint top scorer in the Eredivisie, expressed his disappointment after the draw in Arnhem.
Ambitious Simons yearns for more: “This really bothers me”
Simons opened the score against Vitesse in the eighth minute with his thirteenth goal of the season in the competition. “Then we think: we’ve got it. But that is impossible. The mentality should not be like that. You make the 1-0 and then you have to make the 2-0, 3-0 and 4-0. Then you have to finish it. That did not happen and that is disappointing,” Simons shared his frustration during the press conference.
The taste maker agreed that PSV can take an example from leader Feyenoord when it comes to intensity. The potential he sees during training does not always materialize during the matches. Simons: “We have the quality and intensity, but then comes the match and I don’t really know what will happen. You can see that something is missing. If you look at Feyenoord, it’s really nice how they play football. I think we can do that too, but you have to do it on the field.”
PSV missed a great opportunity to take advantage of Ajax’s defeat against Feyenoord (2-3). Due to the draw at Vitesse (1-1), Ajax is still two points behind and the gap to Feyenoord is no less than eight points. If it continues like this, PSV will miss out on the best two European tickets. What does that mean for Simons’ future?
He was honest about his ambitions in Arnhem: “I have signed with the club for five years. And I’m very happy that I can play here and develop myself. But of course it is disappointing. I just want to play in the Champions League or Europa League and become champions. Every footballer wants that. I now focus on the eight Eredivisie matches and the cup. We’ll see at the end of the season, but I have a five-year contract.”
International duty
The PSV player will report to the Dutch national team on Monday. He is looking forward to the start under Ronald Koeman, but the enthusiasm did not prevail after the loss of points with PSV. He concluded, “I am now going to the Dutch national team, but this really bothers me. My club is the most important thing to me. It is an honor to be with the best players in the Orange squad, but it bothers me to go there like this. I would have preferred the three points so that we could fight for the title. But we have to fight to the end, that’s the only thing that can happen.”
