Winners And Losers From Man Utd Signing Youri Tielemans

Manchester United have completed the £35million signing of Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans, as Michael Carrick’s summer transfer plans heat up.

The Red Devils had endured a slow start to the window, and their fanbase was sent into meltdown when a move for long-term target Ederson collapsed at the eleventh hour. While a deal for Chelsea’s Andrey Santos was sealed, the Atalanta star was supposed to be the marquee midfield acquisition to replace Casemiro at Old Trafford.

However, the north-west club’s hierarchy quickly pivoted to an alternative in Tielemans and it represents an astute piece of business from the much-maligned recruitment department at Old Trafford.

With that said, GIVEMESPORT has taken a look at the winners and losers of Tielemans’ move to Manchester United.

Winners from Man Utd signing Youri Tielemans

Bruno Fernandes

In the first half of last season, before Carrick’s arrival, Bruno Fernandes was forced back into a deeper role under Ruben Amorim. While the Portuguese midfielder still found a way to be productive in this position, his game went up a level when he was pushed further forward in the latter half of the campaign.

Part of the reason Amorim insisted on using Fernandes in a double pivot was that United lacked midfield ball progression without his passing from deep. The former Sporting CP boss used his captain as a way of getting the ball up the pitch because United lack passers in the rest of their squad.

With Tielemans in the team, Fernandes won’t need to be tasked with dropping deep to progress the ball and can instead focus on finding space in the final third and creating shots for his teammates. The 29-year-old Belgium international is exceptional at breaking lines with his passing, and this should lend itself to forging a partnership with Fernandes, who is adept at positioning himself to receive passes like this in the final third.

If there’s anybody in United’s squad who will benefit from finally having an excellent midfield passer, it’s the team’s skipper.

Kobbie Mainoo

While Kobbie Mainoo has an abundance of useful attributes, progressive passing is not one of them. The England international struggles to get his foot on the ball and break lines or play aggressive switches.

Since breaking into the first team at Old Trafford, the youngster hasn’t had anyone to play alongside to take this burden. Tielemans can certainly do this, allowing Mainoo to focus on his primary skills, such as his ability to retain possession under pressure, his dogged defensive work and his intricate movements with the ball in the final third.

The 21-year-old has been crying out for a metronomic playmaker to partner with at the base of United’s midfield, and he may finally have that.

Losers from Man Utd signing Youri Tielemans

Andrey Santos

While Santos was probably aware that he was arriving at United to fulfil a squad rotation role, at least for the immediate short-term, he probably didn’t anticipate being ousted this quickly by a new marquee signing.

On top of this, Tielemans’ set of skills is so unique in United’s squad, and so different to Santos’, that the Brazilian has already been made somewhat redundant. The ex-Monaco man’s ability to progress the ball through passing will quickly become essential to Carrick’s side’s build-up, and this will make him undroppable from the outset.

Thus, Santos will have one less player Carrick can trust to swap him in for, for any given game. The new signing from Chelsea doesn’t provide any of the on-ball value that Tielemans does, and Carrick therefore can’t simply bring him in for the Belgian without United losing significant value to their build-up.

Harry Maguire

Harry Maguire is one of United’s best passers from deep. However, this quality will be much less valuable with an even more prolific progressive passer playing slightly ahead of him. Not only will this potentially lead to the centre-back being less appreciated for his efforts in United’s team, but it also may mean Carrick is less willing to pick him consistently.

If Maguire’s defensive work isn’t up to scratch, then the United boss has less of a reason to select him, as his passing quality won’t be as valuable with another player providing it to a higher level. To make matters worse for the Englishman, Tielemans’ own defensive work, and ability to cover ground, is often considered his biggest weakness.

The ex-Leicester City playmaker lacks athleticism, and the midfields he’s part of are often carved through with relative ease if he’s not paired alongside a doggish, physically imposing, defensive midfielder. United lack this profile in their squad currently, meaning Maguire is likely to suffer as he’ll have more ground to cover and be left more exposed by the lightweight midfield in front of him.

Lisandro Martinez

For similar reasons to Maguire, Lisandro Martinez may be hindered by the signing of Tielemans. Like his English counterpart, his passing from the ball is all of a sudden less valuable, while he’ll be left more exposed in transition by Tielemans’ lack of athleticism.

However, where Martinez may suffer more than Maguire is the reduced physicality and aerial ability in front of United’s back four. Last term, Casemiro’s size and power in aerial duels helped cover Martinez’s relative lack of size and failure to win balls in the air.

Tielemans alongside Mainoo is a significantly inferior midfield in this specific aspect of the game, and this could leave Martinez vulnerable if the opposition has a big striker they want to hit directly.

All Statistics via FotMob – correct as of 13/07/2026