Youri Tielemans has insisted he is feeling good and revealed the joint plan between Villa and Belgium behind his return.
- The Belgian played 74 minutes in Thursday’s 4-0 win over Bologna
- He had spent 57 days out with an ankle injury earlier this season
- Tielemans praised his “telepathic” partnership with Amadou Onana at club and country level
- The 28-year-old insists Villa have genuine momentum heading into the season’s final weeks
The fitness journey. A plan that is working
Tielemans’ road back to full fitness has been anything but straightforward. The Belgian midfielder missed 55 days between September and November with calf problems, sitting out 12 games for both club and country.
A subsequent ankle injury then cost him a further 57 days, raising real concern about his World Cup availability when Belgium included him in their March international break squad.
However, the 28-year-old has now addressed those concerns directly. Speaking to RTBF following Thursday’s dominant 4-0 victory over Bologna, the central midfielder revealed that his inclusion in the Belgium squad during the break was far from accidental.
“The US tour with the Red Devils did me a world of good,” he explained. “That was the plan — to regain my match rhythm. Everything was coordinated between the club and the national team.” That coordinated approach reflects a professional maturity that Emery has consistently praised throughout his Villa tenure.
The minutes are now accumulating in the right direction. The Belgian played 90 minutes in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest — his first full Premier League appearance since January 18th — before contributing 74 minutes in the Europa League quarter-final second leg. “I feel good. It took me a while to get back up to speed, but it was necessary,” he added.
The Onana partnership: telepathic at club and country level
Beyond his individual fitness recovery, Tielemans offered a particularly illuminating insight into his developing partnership with Amadou Onana.
The two Belgians have formed what is rapidly becoming one of the most effective central midfield combinations in the Premier League, and the 28-year-old’s description of their connection was striking in its warmth and confidence.
“We get along well,” he stated. “We can find each other with our eyes closed, and we always know where the other one is. It’s a natural chemistry that will serve us well in the future, whether with Aston Villa or the Red Devils.”
That dual-context reference, club and country simultaneously, underlines how completely the partnership has developed across both environments this season.
“We’re Firing”. Tielemans sets sights on historic finish
Ahead of Thursday’s Bologna victory, the Belgian also delivered one of the week’s most compelling pre-match assessments. Speaking at his pre-match press conference, the central midfielder was clear-eyed, confident, and entirely focused on the task ahead.
“I think we can feel we’re in a good moment,” he said. “We’ve got some momentum with playing for the highest places in the Premier League and the quarter-final in the Europa League.”
Furthermore, his mentality around Villa’s European ambitions was unambiguous. “You play to win it. That’s my mentality and also the mentality for many players in the squad.”
Tielemans is back and Villa need him
With Sunday’s Sunderland clash and the Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest both approaching rapidly, a fully fit and firing Tielemans is arguably the most important development of Villa’s week.
The coordinated plan has worked. The chemistry with Onana is real. And the 28-year-old’s mentality: calm, confident, and entirely focused reflects a player ready to deliver in the most defining weeks of the season.
