Youri Tielemans has been influential in Leicester City’s quest to finish in the Premier League top four this season.
The 23-year-old has played in every league game this season for the Foxes, having started every match except one against Crystal Palace over the hectic Christmas fixture congestion.
Only goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has played more minutes than the Belgium thus far. The midfielder has accumulated an impressive 2548 minutes, seeing him rank sixth in minutes played by Premier League midfielders.
Leicester are third in the table, seven points ahead of fifth-placed West Ham, and with just nine games left to play, they look almost certain to gain a Champions League spot – although this season has been far from predictable.
Anderlecht debut
Tielemans’ ability to play elite level European football has been clear ever since he debuted for Anderlecht in the Champions League at 16.
Following his debut he was heavily linked to big European clubs, eventually signing for AS Monaco in 2017. Since this move, the dynamic midfielder has gone from strength to strength.
When Claude Puel signed him on loan from Monaco in January 2019, shortly before the French manager was replaced by Brendan Rogers, he instantly impressed the hierarchy at the club. In the summer, they spent an estimated £40 million on the youngster on a four-year deal.
Success this season
Although featuring in 37 out of 38 league games last campaign, and performing on a consistent level, this season he has really flourished under Rogers and has added more attacking flair to his game.
This was shown in the Foxes recent 3-1 FA Cup quarter-final triumph over Manchester United before the international break. Tielemans dominated the game with his usual abundance of energy and controlling tempo. This terrific performance was capped off with a wonderful 25-yard strike in the second half to put Leicester 2-1 up.
With two goals and two assists in his four FA Cup games this season, he has helped Leicester have a realistic opportunity to lift the trophy for the first time since 1969. They face Southampton in the semi-final and then Chelsea or Manchester City in the final.
Scoring six goals and getting three assists in the league doesn’t show how important he is to a Rogers’ side that has smashed through the ‘big six’ glass ceiling.
Tielemens’ importance
The importance of the Belgium international is clear. Averaging 64 passes a game and totalling 1869 passes this season (Johnny Evans is second on 1459), he is clearly Leicester’s dictator of play.
His manager has been full of praise, describing him as “nearly impossible” to drop. His range of passing has added another string to Leicester’s ever-growing bow. When fit, James Maddison regularly retrieves the ball in dangerous areas from a forward pass by his teammate Tielemans, whose pass completion rate is an impressive 82%.
Playing in a newly-found box-to-box role, paired with the imperious Wilfred Ndidi, Leicester have one of the most exciting midfields in the world. In fact, when starting together, the Foxes have only lost twice against Arsenal and Everton, winning 20 and drawing three.
With Tielemans on the radar of Inter Milan and probably other top European clubs, Rogers and Leicester must ensure Champions League qualification if they are to keep players of his world class potential at the club.
