Youri Tielemans: Aston Villa agree deal to sign Leicester City midfielder - BBC Sport
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Youri Tielemans: Aston Villa agree deal to sign Leicester City midfielder

Last updated on .From the section Aston Villacomments759

Youri Tielemans playing for Leicester
Youri Tielemans started his senior career at Belgian club Anderlecht

Aston Villa have agreed a deal to sign Leicester midfielder Youri Tielemans.

The Belgium international, 26, will join the club on 1 July, after his Leicester contract expires.

Following Leicester's relegation from the Premier League, Arsenal, Manchester United and Roma were also rumoured to be interested in Tielemans.

Tielemans - expected to be Villa's first signing of the summer - joined Leicester in 2019 and helped the Foxes win the FA Cup in 2021.

The Belgian scored the only goal in Leicester's 1-0 victory against Chelsea in the final. That was one of 28 goals he scored for the club in 195 appearances across all competitions.

Watch: Tielemans' stunning 2021 cup-winning goal

Tielemans joined Leicester initially on loan from Monaco in January 2019 and his move was made permanent in a then club-record £40m deal in July of that year.

He has also played at two World Cups, in 2018 and 2022, as well as Euro 2020.

Tielemans joins Villa after they finished seventh in the Premier League last season, securing qualification for the Europa Conference League.

In May, Tielemans paid tribute to Leicester fans with a farewell video message on Instagram, saying he would be "forever grateful" for their support.

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759 comments

  • Comment posted by Reed Richards, at 18:49 10 Jun 2023

    Somebody needs to get Tielemans back to his best. Wouldn’t be surprised if that was Unai Emery.

    • Reply posted by parkylanestreet, at 19:27 10 Jun 2023

      parkylanestreet replied:
      A great player. Remember the goal he scored to beat Chelsea in the cup final? Fantastic - I thought Gary Lineker was going to fall out of the stands

  • Comment posted by Keith Fenton, at 18:53 10 Jun 2023

    If Villa get into any situations where a fight is required, Tielemans will disappear. A great talent but utterly gutless. With respect to Villa, better clubs would have fought you off for his signature if he had a spine.

    • Reply posted by jam1, at 18:56 10 Jun 2023

      jam1 replied:
      Comment borne out of ignorance and jealousy he cost nothing but his wages and we can sell if need be😎

  • Comment posted by BrutalDeluxe, at 18:54 10 Jun 2023

    Not sure about this one. He looked lazy and disinterested for Leicester in the final few months

    • Reply posted by vanPietro, at 18:57 10 Jun 2023

      vanPietro replied:
      didn't they all ?

  • Comment posted by Gilly79, at 19:31 10 Jun 2023

    As an Arsenal fan I think this is a good signing for Villa. Especially now as they are in Europe so definitely adds to squad depth. I would have liked him at Arsenal. A fresh start, new club on the up, a great coach in Emery so I think this is only positive for Villa. Good luck Villa & Emery for the new season.

    • Reply posted by J-Dizzle, at 22:06 10 Jun 2023

      J-Dizzle replied:
      Yeah me too, would have preferred him to Rice. Can see Arsenal wasting a lot of money this transfer window if they keep chasing Rice/Caicedo, annoying when better midfielders are available.

  • Comment posted by sheffield_fox, at 18:58 10 Jun 2023

    In his 4 seasons at Leicester, he was world class for 2 seasons and completely useless for the other 2.

    Won't miss his awful attitude but will always remember the FA cup final goal.

    • Reply posted by Mike Torrinos Cellphone Battery, at 19:48 10 Jun 2023

      Mike Torrinos Cellphone Battery replied:
      I think things were going on behind the scenes that attributed to some of the players being indifferent. Rodgers lost control of the dressing room a long time before he was sacked. Part of his job was to stop players acting up, he failed.

  • Comment posted by D1690188813470, at 18:52 10 Jun 2023

    Did everyone forget how awol he was for the last 12 months? Regressing player.

    • Reply posted by Rich, at 19:00 10 Jun 2023

      Rich replied:
      Emery can turn a stick into a tree, though.

  • Comment posted by APG67, at 19:08 10 Jun 2023

    Villa have a diamond of a midfielder if they can get him to perform. He has the ability to unlock defences and his shooting is world class. Wish him well (from a sad LCFC supporter).

    • Reply posted by Pittswich, at 19:57 10 Jun 2023

      Pittswich replied:
      Well said. There are a lot of sour grapes from Leicester fans but he is quality.

  • Comment posted by RandomMan, at 19:03 10 Jun 2023

    Good work by Villa. Got him in early and he can be a very good player. Well worth it financially I'd say.

    • Reply posted by ajackson, at 22:46 10 Jun 2023

      ajackson replied:
      Depends what side of him they see.

      He gave Leicester 2 years playing like Gundogan and then 2 years playing like Pogba.

  • Comment posted by Noisy Neighbour, at 19:00 10 Jun 2023

    On his day he can be very good. I feel he downed tools abit for Leicester towards thee me of the season. Good but if business for Villa, Unai has definitely stamped an identity on them and how he wants to play. They’ll be a good watch next season especially in Europe.

  • Comment posted by MarkyMark, at 18:52 10 Jun 2023

    And he wanted champions league football!
    Great player for the foxes but went AWOL this season.

    • Reply posted by Shane MacGowan, at 19:04 10 Jun 2023

      Shane MacGowan replied:
      Was never sure on him, bloke did nothing Matty James can’t do

  • Comment posted by DMT, at 19:14 10 Jun 2023

    In any other type of business, allowing a £40 million asset to disappear, would be laughed at and totally unthinkable. Only in football does this seem to be acceptable .

    • Reply posted by Trentatre, at 19:50 10 Jun 2023

      Trentatre replied:
      Agreed - it's a weird situation

  • Comment posted by Alex, at 19:05 10 Jun 2023

    Was a very good player a couple of seasons ago, could have been a hefty pricetag - Then had a poor Euros and hasn't really matched that form again since

    • Reply posted by Fan Of Whoever Plays Man Utd, at 23:35 10 Jun 2023

      Fan Of Whoever Plays Man Utd replied:
      Sometimes a change of scenery is all it takes.

      Villa will be a good fit for him.

  • Comment posted by ikorraks, at 18:50 10 Jun 2023

    Not sure how he fits into the team right now but I'd have expected him to move to champions league team for £50 million 18 months ago or more.

    If Emery can unlock that guy again then and has a place for him then this is an absolute steal.

    Excited to see how it works out but the good thing is no price tag should hopefully reduce pressure on him to perform.

    • Reply posted by Trentatre, at 19:46 10 Jun 2023

      Trentatre replied:
      Yes, that's my concern, assuming the current starters/rotation players remain. Not a problem area / one that needs much additional depth, especially if Aaron Ramsay also breaks through.

  • Comment posted by MI, at 18:52 10 Jun 2023

    This is a good move by villa, just hope Emery can get him to up his work rate...

    • Reply posted by Mike Torrinos Cellphone Battery, at 19:50 10 Jun 2023

      Mike Torrinos Cellphone Battery replied:
      What happened to the days of being able to demand that work rate and get it immediately.

  • Comment posted by torko 33, at 19:29 10 Jun 2023

    Decent squad signing and i reckon our esteemed coach will get more out of him than leicester have for the last 2 years 😊

    • Reply posted by BlueFox, at 19:38 10 Jun 2023

      BlueFox replied:
      He did the same at Monaco, when it's not going his way he's baggage

  • Comment posted by wackyraces44, at 20:41 10 Jun 2023

    Tielmans lost interest the minute Leicester missed out on the Champion Leagues in 2021 the only reason he stayed was because no big club made firm interest in him so he thought he would wind his contract down he was hedging his bets for two years but how do you put yourself in the shop window if you make no effort at all.

    • Reply posted by qwerty, at 22:53 10 Jun 2023

      qwerty replied:
      Yeah and he's wasted two years of a short career when he could have made himself much more valuable. Trouble with all these 'nearly' players is they all think the world is at their feet.

  • Comment posted by Colin, at 18:56 10 Jun 2023

    Went missing in most games in this last season! Needs to be back at his best to get a regular spot in the Villa team.

    • Reply posted by know your rights, at 05:39 11 Jun 2023

      know your rights replied:
      So he's a bench player then?
      That'll improve his mood.

  • Comment posted by Prit Ch, at 19:45 10 Jun 2023

    Let's hope he decides to make a bit more of an effort then he did for Leicester last season. Jury is out....... But, let's hope Emery gives Cameron Archer a run out next season.

    • Reply posted by Yasuaki, at 22:03 11 Jun 2023

      Yasuaki replied:
      I think most all Villans can get behind that.

      Suspect Boro fans are hoping he'll go out on loan again though.

      He's an absolute talent, and with the potential of extra games next year, we could do with him lurking around the first team for real. I think he's made his point.

  • Comment posted by sheffox, at 20:16 10 Jun 2023

    Good luck Villa with him, very lazy and when going gets tough , well he goes missing.

    • Reply posted by paul urwin, at 11:00 11 Jun 2023

      paul urwin replied:
      100%

  • Comment posted by PM, at 18:49 10 Jun 2023

    Great signing. Villa are on the up

    • Reply posted by Head Honcho, at 18:52 10 Jun 2023

      Head Honcho replied:
      Wasn't Coutinho a great signing? Good luck Youri and thanks for the memories.

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