Incoming Aston Villa signing Youri Tielemans has spoken for the first time about his move to the club, ahead of officially joining us on July 1 as a free agent.
As per the club’s statement last week, they confirmed that an agreement had been reached to sign the Belgian international on a free transfer, upon the expiry of his contract with Leicester City at the end of the month.
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For now, the 26-year-old is on international duty before his summer break and reporting for pre-season training at Bodymoor Heath, and it was the first opportunity for him to discuss the decision to join us.
Tielemans explained why he felt Villa was the right choice for him at this stage of his career, while also revealing that he held talks with Unai Emery to discuss his role within the team, and the Spanish tactician will no doubt be relishing the opportunity to start working with his new signing.
“Why Aston Villa? I had a very good project on the table,” he told RTL. “The coach spoke to me and I also had discussions with the club. The project really convinced me. Aston Villa is a big club in England, and I feel that they have the ambition to continue to rise. That’s what made me want to choose them.
“I think we already have a great team. It would be really good to start well this project. The coach gave me all his confidence and he told me where he saw me playing. I am convinced that I made the right choice. I will find Leander Dendoncker, whom I have known for a very long time. See someone a familiar one will help me with the integration.”
Tielemans adds much-needed competition and depth in midfield, and importantly he fits the style of play and system that Emery has implemented since he arrived with his technical ability and composure in possession as we look to control games and dominate with the ball.
With Villa hoping to play in excess of 50 games next season given our desire to not only progress further in the Premier League and compete in domestic cup competitions, but there is also the possibility of a deep run in the Europa Conference League.
Having added Tielemans to our midfield group alongside the likes of Boubacar Kamara, Douglas Luiz and John McGinn, we’ll now have options for Emery to utilise that can provide him with different tactical solutions and the option to rotate when needed.
It’s a positive first signing of the summer transfer window, and it certainly sounds as though Tielemans has bought into the vision of where the club is going, and he will hopefully now play an instrumental part in helping get us there.
