MANCHESTER UNITED fans joked Youri Tielemans is on his way to Old Trafford this summer after Erik ten Hag’s sneaky gesture.
The Leicester star, 25, was brought on by Brendan Rodgers as a second-half substitute in the 3-0 defeat to United.
But as Tielemans prepared to replace Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Ten Hag made a beeline, casually walking over to the Belgian on the touchline.
And the United manager gave the midfield technician a cheeky tap on the back before he jogged on.
Tielemans is out of contract at the King Power at the end of the season and has refused to sign any of the extensions offered by the Foxes.
He continues to be linked with a free transfer move to United – or possibly to the Emirates with Arsenal.
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Now eagle-eyed Red Devils fans on Twitter are convinced he is joining them in the North-West after Ten Hag’s magic touch.
One wrote: “Erik ten Hag patting Tielemans on the back as he enters the field. Ten Hag cooking for the summer already.”
Another said: “Did anyone see Erik ten Hag pat Youri Tielemans when he got subbed on? Might be only me but I’d love to see him in a Manchester Utd shirt.”
And a third added: “Ten Hag’s tap on Tielemans back as he came on didn’t go unnoticed…”
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Tielemans joined Leicester for a club-record £40million in 2019 and etched his name into the history books with his stunning winning goal in the 2021 FA Cup final.
The 58-cap Belgium international, though, was unable to do anything to prevent a Leicester defeat today – in what some plucky fans dubbed his Old Trafford “audition”.
He took to the field with his side 2-0 down through a Marcus Rashford double – and just two minutes later Jadon Sancho completed the scoring.
However, plenty of fans and pundits were stunned that Marcel Sabitzer avoided a red card for a studs-up tackle into Wout Faes’ knee.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
