Barcelona Rekindle Interest in Former La Masia Graduate Now Shining in Bundesliga

Barcelona continue to scout and evaluate various players in the transfer window as they seek to add offensive firepower ahead of the upcoming campaign.

This week, Deco, Barcelona's sporting director, held discussions with Xavi Simons' sibling and a representative familiar with the player's circumstances, according to SPORT. Simons may be approaching his departure from RB Leipzig, as several European clubs, including Bayern Munich, have expressed interest in acquiring his services.

The SPORT article indicates that Simons would enthusiastically embrace a return to Barcelona. The Netherlands international entered La Masia at age 7 and remained until accepting Paris Saint-Germain's proposal when he reached the U-15 category.

While developing in Barcelona's youth system, he trained alongside future teammates like Alejandro Balde, Fermín López and Marc Casadó at the academy level.

Simons has competed in the Bundesliga for two seasons, recording 21 goals and 23 assists across 76 matches for Leipzig. At merely 22 years old, he's attracting renewed interest from elite clubs throughout Europe.

Considering the demand he's creating, his youth and his capabilities, securing Simons through a permanent deal would require substantial investment. Consequently, there's minimal expectation that Barcelona will aggressively pursue his signature due to their publicized economic constraints.

Additionally, Simons' preferred role as an attacking midfielder represents a position Barcelona already has adequately filled. Hansi Flick considers Barcelona's midfield options sufficient—possibly excessive—making a pursuit of Simons even more unlikely.

What remains evident is that, regardless of financial limitations, Deco and Barcelona's recruitment team continue monitoring numerous targets to strengthen Flick's roster. Whether any deals will come to fruition remains highly unpredictable.