Youri Tielemans provides a taste of what is to come at Aston Villa after Belgium 3-0 win v Estonia
Aston Villa fans will be licking their lips at the prospect of new signing Youri Tielemans pulling on the shirt for the first time and he provided them a reminder of his superb qualities for Belgium.
Villa confirmed [10 June] that the Belgian international would officially join on a free transfer on 1 July after his contract at Leicester City expired, signing on a four-year deal.
A regular feature for Belgium on the international stage, picking up 60 caps since his debut in 2016, Tielemans has long been considered one of the most innovative and progressive midfielders in the Premier League.
Villa boss Unai Emery has already transformed the tactical trajectory at Villa Park with the club now becoming both an effective and decisive team both in the transition and when playing out from the back and the signing of Tielemans is another telling element which would enhance an already impressive philosophy at Villa Park.
The 26-year-old midfielder looks a perfect option to add some extra creativity and dynamism to Villa’s midfield in the final third.
A player who will considerably increase the technical and progressive ceiling of his new teammates, as evidenced by him sat in the 86th percentile for progressive passes made by midfielders last season, averaging 6.95 per 90 minutes [FBRef].
And he certainly showed his quality again in a stunning individual performance against Estonia in their 3-0 Euro 2024 qualifying triumph on Tuesday [20 June]. The now-former Leicester City man enjoyed the most touches (107) [SofaScore] of all players on the pitch, and played the most passes too (82).
Tielemans, lauded as a “phenomenon” by former Anderlecht player Par Zetterberg, also completed 87 per cent of his passes, with 15 of them played into the final third, which is an impressive figure whilst also completing 100 per cent of his dribbles in a truly metronomic and influential showing. He also made six recoveries, won two out of the three tackles he challenged, as well as six of his eight ground duels.
The 26-year-old also drew more fouls (2) than any other player on the pitch, as per SofaScore.
If this taster performance for his Villa Park future is anything to go by then Emery has just gone and signed himself a player who could aid their quest to challenge amongst the elite both domestically and in Europe.
A tantalising prospect for the Spaniard and the whole of the Aston Villa fanbase. What a signing, what a performance.
In other Aston Villa news, the club would not be in Europe next season without one player who sits top of one key statistics area.