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Aston Villa transfer business hailed as 1 July signing completely lined up
We’re delighted to welcome former Aston Villa full-back Alan Hutton as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Villa Park…
Alan Hutton has hailed Aston Villa for agreeing terms to sign Youri Tielemans on a free transfer on 1 July when his contract at Leicester City expires.
Villa announced on Saturday (10 June) that Tielemans, 26, will join them at the start of next month after reaching an agreement with the Belgium international.
The Athletic journalist David Ornstein reported prior to that announcement that Villa had to beat off a lot of competition to sign the former Anderlecht midfielder, who suffered relegation from the Premier League with Leicester last season.
Hutton admits Tielemans’ 2022/23 season was one to forget but overall, he’s delighted to see the signing being completely lined up for 1 July.
Speaking to Villa News, the former right-back said: “It puts Aston Villa in a good position.
“Tielemans is an excellent footballer, although he didn’t have the best of seasons last year. But he’s only 26 so to get him on a free transfer, an international player who knows the Premier League, he ticks all the boxes.
“He gives you something different. He doesn’t just play in that central role because he can play higher up the pitch and do a lot of different jobs.
“I think that puts Villa in a really good position at this moment in time because of the options they already have in John McGinn, Boubacar Kamara and the rest.
“It’s an excellent signing – an excellent bit of business.”
Tielemans played 31 times in the league last season for Leicester, scoring three goals and supplying two assists in the process.
In other Aston Villa news, the club has been backed to complete a £42million-plus transfer for an “outstanding” European player.