Champions League 2017-18: 10 breakout stars
By Adam Stocker
6. Youri Tielemans – Monaco
Monaco were the surprise team last season when they advanced to the Champions League semifinals and won Ligue 1. However, last season’s success attracted the interest of the financial giants of Europe, who paid large transfer fees for Monaco’s star players. Monaco sold Benjamin Mendy, Bernardo Silva, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Kylian Mbappe to bigger clubs.
After selling off four key contributors, Monaco dipped into the transfer market and signed highly regarded Belgium midfielder Youri Tielemans from Anderlecht. Despite only turning 20 in May, Tielemans played a lot for Anderlecht after breaking into the lineup as a 16-year-old. In four seasons with the club, Tielemans appeared in 185 games, scoring 35 goals and adding 31 assists. Tielemans’ success as a teenager is the main reason the Belgium midfielder has called him a prodigy in the past.
While Tielemans often plays as a center midfielder, he does offer Monaco positional versatility. Tielemans can play as a winger and has started at left-back in his career. In an era where position designations are extremely flexible, Tielemans should excel in Leonardo Jardim’s team because he can line up in multiple positions.
Even as a teenager, Tielemans was physically strong and can match up with opposing players. When given space, Tielemans is unafraid to move forward and score goals from well outside of the box. Tielemans is an excellent dribbler and made defenders look silly at times last year. As a playmaker, Tielemans can thread the ball behind defenders allowing strikers to run onto them.
Monaco are in the most balanced group in the tournament with RB Leipzig, Porto and Besiktas. Any of the four teams could win the group, making it unlikely that Monaco will be able to make another run to the semifinals.