Youri Tielemans has attempted to play down suggestions that he has bigger ambitions than playing for Aston Villa.
When Tielemans was coming to the end of his contract at Leicester City in the summer of 2023, there was frequent speculation regarding his next club.
Rather than join a team participating in the Champions League or Europa League, the Belgium international made the short move across the Midlands to Villa after their Conference League qualification.
While Tielemans took time to earn a regular spot in Unai Emery's starting lineup, the 27-year-old is now viewed as one of the first names on the teamsheet.
Tielemans has started all 13 matches in the Premier League and Champions League during 2024-25, contributing one goal and four assists.
However, Villa's recent unbeaten run with him in the side came to an end on Sunday afternoon as they were blown away by Tottenham Hotspur in a 4-1 defeat.
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What has Tielemans had to say?
With Villa having dropped to seven points adrift of leaders Liverpool, a surprise Premier League title challenge looks unlikely during this season.
As a result of Villa having already been eliminated from the EFL Cup and being outsiders to go deep in the Champions League, their only realistic hope of silverware this campaign is the FA Cup.
In an interview with Het Belang van Limburg, Tielemans has spoken of the criticism from the opening months of his time with Villa, as well as attempting to remain coy over whether he would consider a move to a higher-profile club if an opportunity materialised.
Tielemans said: "I've heard left and right about why I didn't go to such a big club earlier, but I'm doing really well here. The coach wanted to reach the Champions League, and we are already there, earlier than expected.
"Aston Villa will still grow, but when you have the opportunity to move up, you never say no in advance. At the moment I'm not thinking about it."
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Would bigger clubs still chase Tielemans?
Although starring for Anderlecht and featuring for Monaco during the early phase of his career, his best days have been spent in the Midlands since 2019.
Winning an FA Cup with Leicester and earning 74 caps for Belgium are the highlights, but Tielemans will be 28 years of age come the end of the season.
With two years left on his contract at that point, he may not be in any rush to commit to a renewal as he anticipates one final chance to make the switch to a more established Champions League team.
From Villa's perspective, they signed Tielemans on a free transfer, providing them with a future opportunity to make a substantial profit with regards to the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules.
Taking advantage of that scenario is something that cannot be ignored as a possibility given the issues that they faced earlier this year.
Darren Plant
