Anyone who has watched Leicester City in recent years will know one thing with certainty, Youri Tielemans is a talented player.
The midfielder has been the key man in Brendan Rodgers’ side for several years, continuing to develop into the player many believed he would be from a young age.
He’s the lynchpin of what the Foxes do, with them often better as a team when he’s fit and, more importantly, firing.
The 24-year-old is yet to really establish himself in the same way at international level, though, with Belgium yet to see the real best of what he can offer.
That’s not to say the midfielder has not been good for his country, but he is yet to nail down a place under Roberto Martinez and really show what he’s about.
They say the Leicester man is the ‘Golden Boy’ of the next generation of Red Devils, but there is a debate about where he can play.
They believe the midfielder ‘absolutely can’ play as a number six, and former teammate Jan Vertonghen insisted he ‘can become one of the best in the world at that position.’
Their belief is that he has the ‘insight and skills’ to do well in the position, but Martinez feels differently, with a clash against San Marino in 2019 highlighting that.
Tielemans started as the six in that game but was ‘a little too attack-minded’ for Martinez’s instructions, often leaving the defence exposed, something the Belgium boss pointed out after the game.
He feels Tielemans is best with a ‘defensive midfielder’ alongside him, the same way he plays for Leicester. Indeed, moving forwards, he sees Tielemans as ‘mainly an emergency solution’ when it comes to the defensive midfield spot.
And therein lies the problem for the Leicester man. While some believe he’s capable in one position doing a role, his manager thinks otherwise and wants him elsewhere.
