Despite being a regular starter at Leicester City, Youri Tielemans felt it was time to change and ran down his contract, eventually signing for Aston Villa on a free.
Once a hero at the King Power Stadium, there was a feeling his level wasn’t quite the same as it once was, and while they would have understandably liked some money from a sale, his exit, which came after a relegation, isn’t something that is overly regretted by the Foxes.
What appears to be a regret, however, is Tielemans’ decision to sign for Aston Villa, as he’s already complaining about what’s happened since he arrived, as relayed by DH on Friday.
While the answer was candid, there’s little to suggest his words will change matters at Aston Villa straight away, especially since Unai Emery knows all about it.
He said: “The situation is not pleasant. I told the manager that I came to Villa to play. He understands me, but at the moment, he prefers to play with the two midfielders from last season. He told me that soon, there will be a succession of games and I’ll get more playing time.
“I know that answer doesn’t get me anywhere, but what should I do? As soon as I get the opportunity, I want to take it. So far, I’ve started once, in the Conference League.”
That came in a formality of a game against Hibernian, as Aston Villa had already won the first leg 5-0 away, and were in no danger of failing to qualify for the European competition.
Elsewhere, he has played 93 minutes of football in the Premier League, all from the bench, and came on in the aforementioned victory in Scotland for the final 23 minutes of the rout.
