Top pundit hits out at Aston Villa summer signing: ‘Super talented, but I’m not sure he puts the graft in’
Youri Tielemans (r) has not found his best form for Villa yet
Former Liverpool and England midfielder Danny Murphy admits he is ‘not sure’ whether one of Aston Villa’s main summer signings can cut it at Villa Park.
The Premier League side had a busy summer as they brought in the likes of Youri Tielemans, Pau Torres, Moussa Diaby, Nicolo Zaniolo and Clement Lenglet but Murphy is not convinced about the club’s first addition.
Tielemans joined on a free transfer after leaving Leicester City following their relegation from the Premier League. The Belgian midfielder penned a four-year deal at Villa Park, officially joining on July 1.
While it was seen as a shrewd piece of business to pick an experienced Premier League campaigner for no fee, there have been doubts raised over his work rate – given the pace of the game Unai Emery likes his teams to play at.
And those doubts have been echoed by Murphy, although he admits that it’s still early in the season in terms of making a proper judgment of the player.
“I think they have done some good business,” Murphy said on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE when asked about Villa’s summer transfer window.
“I’m not sure on Tielemans, you know. Super talented, but I’m not sure he puts the graft in.”
He added: “Diaby is a terrific signing”, before eventually giving Emery’s men an overall score of 7/10 for their transfer business.
Villa will be back in action on September 16 when they host Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
