Manchester United’s Midfield Steal: Tielemans Praise from Ex-Pros
Manchester United have spent hundreds of millions trying to fix their midfield over the last decade. According to two men who know the Premier League inside out, they may finally have cracked it for £35 million.
Not a statement signing. A smart one.
On The Obi One Podcast, former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel didn’t bother dressing it up. He went straight for it.
“For me, it’s Youri Tielemans,” he said. “Honestly, how the f*ck did Manchester United get him for £35m? That’s a f*cking steal.”
That’s not the language of polite, distant admiration. That’s a Champions League winner stunned by the value of a deal.
A Complete Midfielder, On the Cheap
Mikel has shared midfields with some of the best of his era. He knows what a modern engine room needs. With Tielemans, he sees the full package.
He highlighted the Belgian’s tactical range: a six, an eight, a ten. Pick your system, Tielemans fits it.
“Obviously, we all know how Tielemans plays, he can play as a six, an eight or a ten and when you have a player that can play anywhere, it gives you the variety to change the way you want to play. Tielemans is that guy,” Mikel said.
Goals from midfield. Threat from set pieces. Calm on the ball. Reluctant to give it away. It’s the blend United have been chasing for years.
The only caveat Mikel was prepared to concede? Pace.
“The only thing people can say is that he’s not the quickest, but he reads the game so well. He is very intelligent with and without the ball. When I look at all the midfielders that have transferred to different clubs [this summer], the best one is Tielemans.”
In a market where ordinary midfielders go for extraordinary money, that’s a damning verdict on everyone else’s business – and a glowing one on United’s.
Beyond the Numbers
If Mikel focused on versatility and intelligence, Toby Alderweireld went straight for something less obvious: courage.
The former Tottenham Hotspur and Belgium defender, speaking to Hajper, argued that Tielemans’ true worth can’t be captured by spreadsheets alone.
“The problem with modern football is that sometimes we look too much at stats like assists and goals,” Alderweireld said. “Of course, Youri Tielemans creates assists and scores goals, and can shoot from outside the box and score free kicks, but he is so much more than that.”
What he sees is a connector. A midfielder who knits play together and constantly looks to drag his team up the pitch.
“Tielemans is a link up player, and you have to watch him to understand why he is so important to his teams, not just look at his stats, because he is always trying to play the ball forward,” Alderweireld explained.
Then came the contrast that will sting a few of Tielemans’ peers.
“You have some midfield players who have a pass success rate of 98% but they are always playing the ball backwards. Tielemans is a guy who turns, opens up and plays the ball between the lines, and that’s very important for a club like Manchester United who need to break other teams down.”
This is exactly where United have so often stalled: sterile domination, sideways passing, no incision. Alderweireld’s point is simple – Tielemans doesn’t hide behind safe numbers. He risks the ball to move the game.
Built for Old Trafford Pressure
Risk-taking at Old Trafford is not for the faint-hearted. Every misplaced pass draws a groan, every turnover a social media storm. Alderweireld, who has shared a dressing room with Tielemans for Belgium, believes the midfielder is built for that environment.
“Even when he’s playing in a deep role, he’s playing it in an attacking way. He’s thinking about going forwards, always,” he said.
Sometimes that will mean losing the ball. Alderweireld doesn’t pretend otherwise. But he frames it as a necessity, not a flaw.
“Sometimes he will lose the ball but that’s what happens when you take some risks in games to make things happen, and I think that’s something United need, and he has the mentality to be brave and positive under the big pressure of the shirt.”
That last part is crucial: the shirt. The weight of expectation. The demand not just to participate, but to take charge.
“He will put in ultra big effort and say to his team-mates, give me the ball and let me change the game for you. He will take the responsibility to take Manchester United forward.”
United have lacked those voices in midfield. Players who don’t just recycle possession, but demand responsibility and impose themselves on the rhythm of the match.
Now they have a World Cup-hardened, Premier League-proven midfielder, praised by two respected compatriots from rival clubs, both convinced he is the standout midfield signing of the summer.
For £35 million.
If Tielemans plays anything like Mikel and Alderweireld expect, the real question won’t be how United got him so cheap – it will be how so many others let him go there at all.
