Tielemans Transfer: Mikel and Alderweireld Call £35m Deal a Steal
Manchester United have made plenty of expensive midfield mistakes in recent years. This one, according to two men who know the Premier League and Belgian football inside out, is the opposite.
For John Obi Mikel, Youri Tielemans isn’t just a smart signing. He’s the midfield signing of the summer – and at £35m, an outrageously good piece of business.
Speaking on The Obi One Podcast, the former Chelsea midfielder didn’t bother dressing it up.
“For me, it’s Youri Tielemans. Honestly, how the f*ck did Manchester United get him for £35m? That’s a f*cking steal,” Mikel said. “I watched him before and during the World Cup, and you can see that this is a player.”
Mikel has shared dressing rooms with some of the most complete midfielders of the modern era. What he sees in Tielemans is a manager’s dream: tactical elasticity and technical security wrapped into one.
He broke it down simply. Tielemans can operate as a six, an eight or a ten. That range, Mikel argued, gives United the power to flip systems without ripping up the core of the team.
“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,” he said. “He scores goals, he’s dangerous from set pieces, he’s brilliant on the ball, and he rarely gives it away.”
There is, as ever, one caveat that gets thrown at the Belgian: pace. He’s not electric over the ground. Mikel doesn’t deny it, but he dismisses it as decisive.
“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.”
From Mikel’s vantage point, United haven’t just filled a gap. They’ve landed a player who can dictate games, shoot from range, deliver on dead balls and still keep the ball moving with minimal waste. A controller and a creator rolled into one.
Toby Alderweireld, who knows Tielemans from close quarters as a compatriot and as a fellow Premier League veteran, sees the same thing – but from a defender’s perspective.
Where Mikel talks about variety, Alderweireld talks about bravery.
In an interview with Hajper, the former Tottenham Hotspur centre-back pushed back against the modern obsession with raw numbers.
“The problem with modern football is that sometimes we look too much at stats like assists and goals,” he 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.”
For Alderweireld, Tielemans’ true value lies in the passes that don’t show up in highlight reels. The ones that break a line, turn a game, tilt a defence out of shape.
“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,” he explained. “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.”
That last line cuts to the heart of United’s recurring problem. Too often, possession without penetration. Too many safe touches, not enough incision. Alderweireld is convinced Tielemans attacks that issue head-on.
He also highlighted the mentality required to handle Old Trafford’s unforgiving glare. It’s not just about technique; it’s about personality.
“Even when he’s playing in a deep role, he’s playing it in an attacking way. He’s thinking about going forwards, always,” Alderweireld said. “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 willingness to risk possession in search of reward is exactly what many United midfields have lacked. Safe options, yes. Game-changers, fewer.
Alderweireld painted Tielemans as a player who won’t hide when the temperature rises.
“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.”
Two ex-Premier League stalwarts. One shared verdict. If Tielemans plays the way they expect, £35m won’t just look like a bargain – it will look like the moment United finally fixed the heart of their team.
