The 23-year-old midfielder suffered a torn ACL in April that forced him to miss the FIFA World Cup. Simons visited the Netherlands squad on Thursday and shared a positive rehab update.
"Everything's going well. I'm feeling good and getting stronger and closer every day," Simons said.
"I'm very happy with that, especially because this is my first serious injury. It was difficult too; it's a World Cup year, and the tournament was around the corner. But it happened; you have to accept it, and it's up to me to come back better and stronger."
The Netherlands crashed out of the World Cup in the round of 32, shortly after which coach Ronald Koeman resigned. He was replaced by Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez, who holds special meaning for Simons.
"It's a dream to be able to experience this. I'm named after him - my mom saw him on TV, and she thought, 'Okay, I'll call him Xavi too'. That's really special," said Simons, who joined FC Barcelona at age 7.
"I was nine or ten when we met him. My mom told him the story, and we've kept in touch since then. Years later, he's the national team coach. I grew up in Spain, and I played at the same club as him, so I've always looked up to him."
The Netherlands look set to clinch a ticket to the UEFA Nations League quarterfinals, with Oranje leading Group A2 ahead of Germany and Greece, whom they face on Friday in Amsterdam.
The Dutch haven't won a trophy since 1988, but are looking to change that under Xavi, Simons said.
"We all have one goal now, and that's winning trophies with the Netherlands."
