Transfer Centre

Bayern Munich 'pushing to sign 21-year-old Arsenal, Barcelona target'

By Oliver Thomas, Senior Reporter | 04 June 2024

Bayern 'pushing to sign 21-year-old Arsenal, Barcelona target'

Bayern Munich are reportedly pushing to sign a 21-year-old attacker that has been linked with both Arsenal and Barcelona this summer.

The Bavarian giants are seeking to bounce back from a disappointing 2023-24 campaign in which they failed to win any silverware for the first time in 12 years.

Bayern were forced to settle for a third-placed finish in the Bundesliga, sitting 18 points behind unbeaten champions Bayer Leverkusen, while they also failed to deliver in the Champions League, DFB-Pokal and DFL-Supercup.

Thomas Tuchel has since been replaced by 38-year-old head coach Vincent Kompany, who has said that Bayern "already feels like home" less than a week after his appointment was confirmed.

Kompany, who has penned a three-year deal at the Allianz Arena, is tasked with returning Bayern to the summit of German football, and a number of targets have already been identified by the club ahead of the summer transfer window.

RB Leipzig's Xavi Simons celebrates scoring their first goal on January 20, 2024 © Reuters

Bayern pushing to sign Xavi Simons

According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Bayern director Max Eberl is pushing for the signing of Paris Saint-Germain attacker Xavi Simons, who is also wanted by Arsenal and Barcelona.

Simons spent the 2023-24 campaign on loan at RB Leipzig and was signed by Eberl before the 50-year-old chief moved to Bayern in February.

Romano claims that Bayern would be interested in luring Simons to Bavaria on loan, with PSG not planning to sell the 21-year-old just yet.

Leipzig are also keen to re-sign Simons, who still has three years remaining on his contract at the Parc des Princes.

RB Leipzig's Lois Openda celebrates scoring their first goal with Xavi Simons on April 27, 2024 © Reuters

Why is Xavi Simons in demand?

After contributing with 22 goals and 12 assists in 48 appearances during a hugely productive 2022-23 campaign at PSV Eindhoven, Simons was re-signed by PSG last summer after they triggered a £5.1m release clause.

The Ligue 1 champions decided to immediately loan the attacker out to Leipzig, though, where he became a star player in 2023-24, scoring 10 goals and registering 15 assists in 43 games across all competitions.

Simons, who helped Die Roten Bullen secure a top-four finish in the Bundesliga and guarantee Champions League football for next season, has since been included in the Netherlands squad for Euro 2024 this summer.

Although Simons is rated highly by PSG, the French outfit are yet to decide when they wish to integrate the attacker into their first-team plans, raising doubts over his future and alerting other clubs.

It has previously been reported that Simons currently favours a move to former club Barcelona - where he began his career in their famous La Masia academy - over a switch to the Premier League or Bundesliga.