Youri Tielemans: Aston Villa star only had eyes for Man United

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The Peoples Person

13 July 2026

Youri Tielemans was only interested in joining

Manchester United

this summer, as being a Red Devil has been a childhood dream for the Aston Villa midfielder – a fact proven by the big-money moves he turned down elsewhere.

In the increasingly transparent transfer market, there are few deals that catch fans and reporters alike by surprise – but the £35 million capture of Tielemans is certainly one.

Having agreed to sign Andrey Santos from Chelsea for £50 million last week, after a similar £39 million arrangement was struck with Atalanta for Ederson,

were expected to be welcoming two new Brazilians to Old Trafford.

But in an explosive twist, INEOS pulled the plug on their pursuit of Ederson after a failed medical, while

quickly pivoting towards Tielemans

after it emerged the Belgium international had a £35 million release clause in his contract at Villa Park.

The Villans did not want to lose their 29-year-old maestro, even going as far as to offer the Europa League winner improved terms in the hope of fending off his suitors by removing the clause. But Unai Emery’s side were powerless to stop United striking a deal after they received the green light from the player, who is understood to be excited to play under Michael Carrick.

The former Leicester City star is expected to travel to Carrington to complete a medical tomorrow and seal a deal which has come out of nowhere, even though the Sint-Pieters-Leeuw native has been dreaming of it since he was a child.

Fabrizio Romano reveals Manchester United’s hierarchy have been working on the move “behind the scenes” over the weekend after identifying Tielemans as their new “top target”.

Speaking on his

YouTube channel

, the Italian transfer expert states, “Youri Tielemans has said yes to all the contract conditions offered by

. [He] is excited by the possibility to play at Old Trafford, it was a dream for him to be a

Man United

player since he was a kid, so everything is in place.”

David Ornstein claims there was “interest from elsewhere” in the

Belgian

, though he rebuffed this in favour of United. This has been expanded on by

talkSPORT

reporter Ben Jacobs, who says there were a number of Saudi Pro League clubs “keen” on signing him.

A move to the Middle East would have been

far

more lucrative than one to M16. But Tielemans only had eyes for the Theatre of Dreams, which he “informed” United of once Belgium’s World Cup campaign came to an end on Friday evening with a 2-1 defeat to Spain in Los Angeles. A costly mistake by

Senne Lammens

proved decisive.

It marked an impressive tournament as captain of Rudi Garcia’s side, who share the same ‘Red Devils’ nickname as United. He scored a brace, including a last-minute penalty, in the pulsating 3-2 comeback win over Senegal in the round of 32, after recording three goals and two assists in the qualifying campaign.

Tielemans was forced to miss the quarter-final loss to Spain with a hamstring injury. It is not serious, however, and he is expected to complete the medical without any issue – which makes a

refreshing change for new midfielders at Old Trafford.

Featured image Alex Grimm via Getty Images

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