It would be somewhat hypocritical for Brendan Rodgers to criticise Youri Tielemans’ reluctance to sign a new, long-term deal at Leicester City.
As Celtic supporters would be all too happy to point out, loyalty meant little to Rodgers when The Foxes came calling three years ago, jilting Celtic in the middle of a season for the bright lights of the Premier League.
Rodgers knows from experience that, even if you are happy where you are, sometimes you’ll receive an offer that’s just too good to turn down.
“For a player, it’s about ambition, the challenge, and sometimes it’s about a different environment,” Rodgers admitted to The Mercury when quizzed about Tielemans’ future at the King Power Stadium.
The £40 million Belgium international is due to become a free-agent in the summer of 2023.
Liverpool are long-term admirers. And, according to Goal, Tielemans’ agent has also held talks with Arsenal at their London Colney training ground.
Is Youri Tielemans leaving Leicester City for Arsenal?
“We have seen it before many times,” Rodgers says. “Teams have won the Champions League and the player will move on. That’s just the nature of it.
“Rightly so, he is at an age and at a stage in his contract where he has to ensure he looks at every option. I would love (his future) to be here at Leicester City. That is natural. But I also understand it’s a very short career.
“While the player is committed, focused and professional, it’s never a worry for me. With Youri you can see his joy of being here, he loves being here, but you have to respect that these guys’ careers are short.”
Ominous indeed.
How much will Tielemans cost?
Even the most optimistic of Leicester supporters would have to admit that, at present, the chances of Tielemans staying around for one more season in the East Midlands look slim.
Especially with the Foxes tenth in the table, 12 points adrift of the top four and exiting the Europa League group-stages in calamitous fashion.
Leicester, to put it bluntly, have gone backwards.
Tielemans is a player who deserves to be strutting his stuff on the Champions League stage. It looks less and less likely that he can achieve those ambitions at Leicester City.
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