Tottenham Hotspur announced on Monday that their young Dutch playmaker Xavi Simons has suffered a complete tear of his anterior cruciate ligament, a serious injury that will require surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation period. The 23‑year‑old midfielder, who had been a bright spot in De Zerbi's squad, confirmed on Instagram that he will miss the remaining fixtures of the 2025‑26 Premier League campaign as well as the upcoming FIFA World Cup with the Netherlands.
The injury occurred during Spurs' 1‑0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux on Saturday. Simons was involved in a challenge with Wolves defender Hugo Bueno and, after landing heavily on his right knee, clutched the joint and fell to the ground.
He attempted to get up and walk off the pitch, but the pain forced him to collapse in front of the Tottenham medical team, who promptly attended to him and later escorted him off the field on a stretcher. The incident took place in the 58th minute, shortly after the Dutchman had helped secure the club's first league win of the year.
Club officials confirmed that the damage is severe enough to rule Simons out for the rest of the season. "He will undergo surgery in the coming weeks and then begin a structured rehab programme with our medical staff," a spokesperson said. The news comes at a critical juncture for a Spurs side fighting to stay above the relegation line. With four matches left, Tottenham sit two points shy of safety and are currently trailing 17th‑placed West Ham United.
The loss of Simons, who arrived from Paris Saint‑Germain for a reported £52 million, adds to a growing injury list that already includes summer signing Mohammed Kudus and captain Cristian Romero, both of whom have been sidelined for the remainder of the campaign. In his Instagram post, Simons expressed his disappointment: "They say life can be cruel and today it feels that way. My season has come to an abrupt end and I'm just trying to process it.
Honestly, I'm heart‑broken. None of it makes sense. All I've wanted to do is fight for my team and now the ability to do that has been snatched away from me, along with the World Cup." He added that he would continue to support his teammates from the sidelines, saying, "I'll walk this path now, guided by faith, with strength, with resilience, with belief as I count down the days to getting back out there.
Be patient with me." Simons' first season in England has been a roller‑coaster. After a promising start under former manager Thomas Frank, he fell out of favour during Igor Tudor's brief tenure, seeing limited minutes and struggling to find consistency. However, under the new coach Roberto De Zerbi, Simons began to flourish, delivering a spectacular strike in a 2‑2 draw with Brighton that showcased his technical ability and eye for goal. His creative spark and willingness to take on defenders had offered Spurs a rare source of individual brilliance, something the squad will now miss as they battle to avoid their first relegation in 49 years.
Former Spurs manager Tim Sherwood weighed in on the club's injury woes, stating on Sky Sports that the frequency of soft‑tissue problems suggests deeper issues within the club's medical and conditioning protocols. "Injuries have derailed Tottenham all season, and it can't be bad luck.
They need to review and have a good look at what's happening to their players because we can all get injured from contact, but a lot of these injuries are not contact. They are twists and soft tissue injuries.
And ultimately, it looks like they might have to pay the price for it, the ultimate price, which is relegation," Sherwood warned. Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge echoed these concerns, pointing out the financial implications of losing a high‑earning talent like Simons.
"If Tottenham do get relegated, they could still have James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Xavi Simons, three very big names, still at the club in the Championship. That's a ruptured ACL for Simons; you can forget this year. That's done.
So with his wages and everything, you've got to look at the financial side of it as well. I'm sorry to say, but Spurs' persistent injury issues need to be looked at.
This is ridiculous now," he said. Bridge also highlighted Simons' youth and the challenges of adapting to the Premier League. "We forget how young he is and how difficult it is to move to the Premier League.
So it's been a bit of an up and down first season for him. He's been in the side, out of the side, he showed more glimpses when he was playing in the Champions League for Spurs this season.
Over the last few weeks, under Roberto De Zerbi, he's really coming into his own. He scored that absolutely stunning goal against Brighton. It really was a brilliant goal out of nothing.
And this is what Spurs are going to miss over the next few games, just that individual bit of brilliance which he's capable of," Bridge noted. The injury list, which now includes key figures such as Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, and the aforementioned Kudus and Romero, has left the squad stretched thin.
Without Simons' creativity, the team will have to rely on other midfielders to generate chances, a task made more difficult by the lack of depth and the mounting pressure of a relegation battle. As Tottenham look ahead to the final stretch of the season, the club's medical staff will focus on getting Simons back to full fitness, while the coaching team must devise alternative tactics to compensate for his absence. Fans and pundits alike will be watching closely to see whether Spurs can muster enough points to stay up, and whether the club will address the underlying injury concerns that have plagued them throughout the campaign.