 Tielemans withBelgium in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Youri Marion A. Tielemans[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1997-05-07)7 May 1997 (age 28)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)[3] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Aston Villa | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 8 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Anderlecht | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2017 | Anderlecht | 139 | (26) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Monaco | 47 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019 | →Leicester City (loan) | 13 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2023 | Leicester City | 138 | (18) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Aston Villa | 85 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Belgium U15 | 4 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Belgium U16 | 10 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | Belgium U21 | 14 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
| 2016– | Belgium | 81 | (12) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18:08, 25 January 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:22, 18 November 2025 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||
Youri Marion A. Tielemans (born 7 May 1997) is a Belgian professionalfootballer who plays as amidfielder forPremier League clubAston Villa andcaptains theBelgium national team.
Tielemans began his career atAnderlecht, where he made 185 official appearances and scored 35 goals across four seasons. He won theleague title twice and in 2017 was chosen as theBelgian Professional Footballer of the Year. He is the youngest Belgian to play in theUEFA Champions League, making his debut in the competition at the age of 16 years and 148 days. After two years atMonaco inLigue 1, he joinedLeicester City in 2019, initially on loan and then for an estimated fee of £33 million. He played 195 total games and scored 28 goals, including the only goal of the2021 FA Cup final. In 2023, when his contract expired, he joined Aston Villa.
Tielemans represented Belgium at several youth levels and before gaining his firstcap forthe national team in November 2016, aged 19. He was part of the squad that came third at the2018 FIFA World Cup, also featuring atUEFA Euro 2020, the2022 World Cup andEuro 2024.
Tielemans is a youth product ofAnderlecht[4][5] and signed his first professional contract with the club at the age of 16.[6]
On 21 July 2013, he was included in the senior squad for the first time, remaining an unused substitute in the 1–0 win overGenk in the2013 Belgian Super Cup. On 28 July 2013, he made his first-team debut in the opening round of theBelgian Pro League season againstLokeren, replacing injuredSacha Kljestan after 25 minutes of a 2–3 home loss.[7][8] This made him the fourth-youngest player in the league's history.[9]
On 2 October 2013, he became the youngest Belgian player to play in theUEFA Champions League, starting in a match againstOlympiacos at the age of 16 years and 148 days.[10] He played 29 games – of which 21 starts – as Anderlecht won the2013–14 Belgian Pro League, scoring to open a 3–0 win overClub Brugge at theConstant Vanden Stock Stadium on 6 April 2014, a game in which he also assistedCyriac.[11] Tielemans won theBelgian Young Player of the Year award in each of his first two seasons.[9]
Tielemans scored 13 times in 37 Belgian First Division A matches as Anderlecht won the2016–17 Belgian First Division A. He won the 2017Ebony Shoe Award for best player of African origin,[12] and was named2016–17 Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year.[13] He scored 5 goals in 152016–17 UEFA Europa League matches, with his club reaching the quarter-finals, and was selected in its Squad of the Season.[14]
On 24 May 2017, Tielemans joined2016–17 Ligue 1 championsMonaco on a five-year deal for a fee of around €25 million.[15][16][17] He made his competitive debut on 29 July in theTrophée des Champions at theGrand Stade de Tanger, playing the full 90 minutes in the 2–1 loss toParis Saint-Germain and assistingDjibril Sidibé's opening goal.[18]
On 4 August 2017, Tielemans made hisLigue 1 debut in the 3–2 home win overToulouse,[19] coming on as a substitute forRadamel Falcao in the 87th minute. He made hisUEFA club competition debut for Monaco on 13 September in theUEFA Champions League group match away toRB Leipzig, playing the full 90 minutes and registering his first competitive goal for Monaco by equalising in a 1–1 draw. On 16 September, Tielemans made his first Ligue 1 start and played the entire match in the 3–0 home win overStrasbourg, after having played a total of 56 minutes as a substitute in his first four Ligue 1 matches.[20][21]
France Football named Tielemans in their lists of the biggest flops of the first half of the season and the season overall.[22][23][24] He scored his first Ligue 1 goal in his 31st game on 2 September 2018, in a 3–2 home loss toMarseille.[25]
On 31 January 2019, Tielemans joinedPremier League clubLeicester City onloan until the end of the season,[26][27] withAdrien Silva going the other way in a swap deal.[28][29] On 9 March, Tielemans scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 win overFulham.[30] Tielemans completed a permanent move to Leicester City on 8 July 2019, on a four-year deal for an estimated fee of £32 million.[31][32] He scored in a 3–1 home win overBournemouth on 31 August, but courted controversy with a high challenge onCallum Wilson that escaped punishment even after consultation with thevideo assistant referee;[33] referees' chiefMike Riley ruled that this was an incorrect decision and Tielemans should have been sent off.[34]
On 15 May 2021, Tielemans scored the only goal of the2021 FA Cup Final with a long-range strike againstChelsea in the 63rd minute,[35] sealing Leicester's first everFA Cup title.[35] He was named theman of the match and later won Leicester's Supporters’ Player of the Year and the Players’ Player of the Year awards.[36][37]
In 2022 Tielemans was linked with a transfer toArsenal, and there was speculation over whether he would sign a new contract.[38][39] In June 2023, after Leicester's relegation from the Premier League, Tielemans announced he would be leaving the club.[40]
On 10 June 2023, Premier League clubAston Villa announced that they had reached an agreement to sign 26-year-old Tielemans on a free transfer, upon the expiry of his Leicester City contract on 1 July.[41] He made his debut on 12 August in the season opener, a 5–1 loss atNewcastle United, in which he replaced the injuredLeon Bailey at half time.[42]
On 26 October 2023, Tielemans scored his first goal for Aston Villa in a 4–1 awayUEFA Europa Conference League victory overAZ Alkmaar.[43]
At the end of season awards for the2024–25 season, Tielemans was voted both Supporters' and Players' Player of the Season for Aston Villa that season.[44]
In June 2015, Tielemans was called up to the seniorBelgium squad for aUEFA Euro 2016 qualifier againstWales.[45] The 19-year-old finally made his senior international debut on 9 November 2016, in a 1–1friendly away draw torivalNetherlands, replacingSteven Defour in the 82nd minute.[46]
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Tielemans was included in managerRoberto Martínez's 23-man squad for the2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[47] He played four matches in the tournament, including the 2–0 win overEngland in the third-place match.[48]
Tielemans scored his first senior goal for Belgium on 21 March 2019, in aUEFA Euro 2020qualifying match againstRussia.[49] He was called up for the delayed final tournament in May 2021,[50] and for the2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[51] At the latter tournament, he was substituted at half time forAmadou Onana as the team struggled to a 1–0 win overCanada in their opening match.[52] He was a substitute in the two other games of the group stage elimination, in which Onana and thenLeander Dendoncker started alongsideAxel Witsel.[53][54]
On 3 September 2025, Tielemans was appointed as the permanent captain of the Belgian national team by managerRudi Garcia.[55]
Tielemans began as aholding midfielder, but was moved by Anderlecht managerBesnik Hasi to a more attacking role, where he scored long-range goals and was compared toFrank Lampard andAxel Witsel.[56] A 2015 profile bySky Sports noted his versatility as adefensive orattacking midfielder, concluding that his pace, passing and shot power suited the latter role better.[56]Paul Van Himst, a former Anderlecht and Belgium player, noted at the same time that Tielemans had good skills withlong passes.[56]
Primarily a box-to-box midfielder at Leicester,[57] Tielemans has played frequently as a number 10 under Unai Emery at Aston Villa, frequently making progressive passes and recovering the ball for his team.[58] During the2024–25 season, Tielemans was highlighted as one of Aston Villa's best players[59][60] and was praised for his footballing intelligence,[61] accurate shooting,[59] ball recoveries and passing,[62] with his midfield performances being compared to that of his Belgian compatriotKevin De Bruyne.[62] He set a Premier League record in November 2024, completing 126 successful passes in Villa's 3–2 victory againstEverton.[63]
Tielemans was born inSint-Pieters-Leeuw, Flemish Brabant.[64] His father is ofFlemish descent and his mother is ofCongolese descent.[65] He continued education until the age of 18, combining studies with his professional career.[56] As of 2020, he lived in theLeicestershire village ofQuorn with his wife, Mendy, and their three daughters.[66][67]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Anderlecht | 2013–14 | Belgian Pro League | 29 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 4[c] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 2 | |
| 2014–15 | Belgian Pro League | 39 | 6 | 4 | 2 | — | 8[d] | 0 | 1[e] | 0 | 52 | 8 | ||
| 2015–16 | Belgian Pro League | 34 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | 9[f] | 0 | — | 45 | 7 | |||
| 2016–17 | Belgian Pro League | 37 | 13 | 1 | 0 | — | 15[g] | 5 | — | 53 | 18 | |||
| Total | 139 | 26 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 185 | 35 | ||
| Monaco | 2017–18 | Ligue 1 | 27 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4[c] | 1 | 1[h] | 0 | 35 | 1 |
| 2018–19 | Ligue 1 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6[c] | 0 | 1[h] | 0 | 30 | 5 | |
| Total | 47 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 65 | 6 | ||
| Leicester City (loan) | 2018–19 | Premier League | 13 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 13 | 3 | ||||
| Leicester City | 2019–20 | Premier League | 37 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 2 | — | — | 44 | 5 | ||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 38 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7[f] | 0 | — | 51 | 9 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 32 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13[i] | 0 | 1[j] | 0 | 50 | 7 | |
| 2022–23 | Premier League | 31 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 37 | 4 | |||
| Total | 151 | 21 | 12 | 4 | 11 | 3 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 195 | 28 | ||
| Aston Villa | 2023–24 | Premier League | 32 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11[k] | 1 | — | 46 | 3 | |
| 2024–25 | Premier League | 36 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12[c] | 2 | — | 53 | 5 | ||
| 2025–26 | Premier League | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[f] | 1 | — | 22 | 1 | ||
| Total | 85 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 4 | — | 121 | 9 | |||
| Career total | 419 | 56 | 32 | 8 | 15 | 3 | 93 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 566 | 78 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 2016 | 2 | 0 |
| 2017 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 9 | 4 | |
| 2025 | 7 | 3 | |
| Total | 81 | 12 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 March 2019 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium |  Russia | 1–0 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying |
| 2 | 10 October 2019 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium |  San Marino | 6–0 | 9–0 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying |
| 3 | 15 November 2020 | Den Dreef, Leuven, Belgium |  England | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A |
| 4 | 18 November 2020 | Den Dreef, Leuven, Belgium |  Denmark | 1–0 | 4–2 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A |
| 5 | 11 June 2022 | Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales |  Wales | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2022–23 UEFA Nations League A |
| 6 | 26 March 2024 | Wembley Stadium, London, England | England | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 7 | 2–1 | |||||
| 8 | 22 June 2024 | RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne, Germany |  Romania | 1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 |
| 9 | 6 September 2024 | Nagyerdei Stadion, Debrecen, Hungary |  Israel | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League A |
| 10 | 9 June 2025 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium | Wales | 2–0 | 4–3 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 11 | 4 September 2025 | Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz, Liechtenstein |  Liechtenstein | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 12 | 5–0 |
Anderlecht
Leicester City
Belgium
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