[ad_pod ]
This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
The addition of record-signing Youri Tielemans was a stellar signing for Leicester.
After initially picking him up on loan earlier in the year, the Foxes fought hard to get their man and eventually brought him in for £40m, breaking the £30m fee they paid for Ayoze Perez only a few days before.
Tielemans was nothing short of a sensation in the Midlands during his first stint, scoring three goals whilst also helping himself to four assists in 13 Premier League matches.
The Belgian’s performances were superb but there is one specific area where he can improve in ahead of the new campaign.
Watch Leicester City Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below
On the chalkboard
When the 22-year-old arrived for his temporary stay over the winter, Claude Puel preferred him as a central midfielder, an area that Brendan Rodgers then played him in too.
Yet, as the season reached its climax, he started to appear behind the striker with James Maddison out on the flanks.
Tielemans certainly knows where the goal, netting 44 times throughout his career so far. But there is room for improvement.
From shots inside the penalty area in 2018/19, his expected goals rate was 2.88 per Understat. However, outside the box it was just 1.24.
Have Leicester become a greater force than Arsenal? One Foxes fan makes the case why in the video below…
Taking a closer look at things, he scored just twice from attempts from range last season for both Monaco and Leicester, taking 47 shots in total outside of the box.
One of those goals happened to be from a set-piece but if we focus on the efforts he has from open play he needs to get better.
Just six of his attempts at goal from distance were saved whilst 15 shots from open play were missed completely.
Therefore, if Rodgers is to get the best out of Tielemans next season he may look to discourage him from shooting from distance.
Instead, the youngster may be better off playing the ball more simply or trying to work an opening for someone else.
There is no doubting the quality the Belgium international has, but this is one area he definitely needs to work on as he looks to progress his career.