‘I’m Not Youri Tielemans’ – Aston Villa Out-on-loan Star Defends Not Meeting Expectations
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Aston Villa midfielder Leander Dendoncker has made it clear that he is a defensively strong player and not a difference-making creative individual like Villans team-mate Youri Tielemans.
Dendoncker is currently on loan from Aston Villa at his former club Anderlecht until the end of this campaign.
The former Belgium man is having a mixed bag season at Anderlecht and he recently made clear that the ups and downs of the Belgian side’s season have not given him the continuity he needs.
Dendoncker is well aware that he has not been able to hit the form that was expected from him in Belgium after his six-year stay in the Premier League.
However, he stressed that he has never been a creative player in his life; he reiterated that he is a defensive-minded player who scores once in a while.
The Villa man indicated that there may well have been a disconnect between what he does as a player and what others, such as his Villa team-mate Tielemans, do.
“I understand that the perception was: ‘He’s back, he’s going to change everything’ people should also expect a lot from me – I played six years in the Premier League”, Dendoncker told Belgian daily Het Laatste Nieuws.
“And I am aware that those expectations have not been met.
“But, I have never been that creative player who scored and made the difference.
“I’m not Youri Tielemans. I’m not Matias Suarez. I’m not Boussoufa.
“I recover balls. I run deep. I score once, but never spectacularly.”
Tielemans has had an impressive season at Villa Park this term, clocking close to 4,500 minutes in more than 50 all-competition appearances.
Dendoncker will be back at Villa Park at the end of the season and it remains to be seen if he will have any chance to play alongside Tielemans as he has admitted he does not seem to fit into Aston Villa’s plans.
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