Youri Tielemans: Manchester United in talks to sign Aston Villa and Belgium midfielder | Football news
Manchester United are closing in on the £36m signing of Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa.
Sky Sports News understand that the midfielder has a release clause in his contract that United are triggering.
Negotiations are progressing rapidly after Belgium’s exit from the World Cup.
Tielemans has been at Villa since 2023, when he joined on a free transfer from Leicester City, and has made 134 appearances for the club, scoring 10 times.
In that time, Villa have won the Champions League twice, reached the quarter-finals of that competition and won the Europa League last season under Unai Emery, with Tielemans opening the scoring in the final against Freiburg.
Before joining Villa, Tielemans won the FA Cup and Community Shield with Leicester.
United have already agreed a £50m deal to sign the Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos, while a Tielemans’ move comes after Sky in Italy reported that United are interested in the Atalanta midfielder Ederson turned off.
United agreed a £38m deal to sign the Brazil international – who was playing for his country at the World Cup – and was due to sign a four-year deal at the club with an option to extend his stay by a further 12 months.
Analysis: Tielemans is ready, reliable midfield option
Sky Sports’ Sam Blitz and William Bitibiri:
Aston Villa have many gems in their squad – Emiliano Martinez, Ollie Watkins and Morgan Rogers to name a few. But ask any Villa fan who their most important player is and most will say Youri Tielemans.
Many have concluded that Villa’s exit from the Premier League picture in February coincided with Tielemans’ ankle injury. They went from a team that won 10 of their 13 league games to one that lost four of their next seven.
Heavily missed in his absence, the Belgian is a vital cog in the Villa midfield thanks to his command of every area. He excels in duels – with one of the highest success rates among midfielders in the Premier League – but is also important in football.
Tielemans can break through the lanes and provide that killer pass. His football numbers are among the most brilliant in the Premier League.
Tielemans has emerged as a sensational man to reinvigorate Manchester United’s midfield but he ticks more boxes than anyone else on Old Trafford’s shortlist.
For a team preparing for the rigors of the Champions League, as well as a desire to improve on their current Premier League position, Tielemans represents a ready-made option who was very successful at United last season. Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha raised the bar for United last season and are examples of INEOS’s smart business.
The 29-year-old will add to a CV as impressive as his goalscoring repertoire. He scored the winning goal against Leicester City in the 2021 FA Cup final, again beat Aston Villa in the Europa League final last season and captained Belgium at the 2026 World Cup.
Tielemans brings calmness to management, leadership without an armband and does it all at the highest level. INEOS is planning for the long term but that should not detract from what United want to achieve quickly. Tielemans is a good fit and could be an early shout for a summer signing.
