Alex Telles was one of Manchester United’s stand out performers the last time they played Leicester and the Brazilian will be targeting his first Premier League start of the season against the Foxes this time around.
Playing at left-back, the former Porto man was amongst the starters in the much-changed United side that lost 2-1 to Leicester at Old Trafford in May.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer rung the changes as it was our second out of three games across five days.
But United’s number 27 on his seventh Premier League start impressed against Brendan Rodgers’ side. He also started the FA Cup quarter-final loss against the 2016/17 Premier League winners last season too.
Telles solid defensively
The 28-year-old is renown for his attacking qualities and delivery from wide areas, but it was his defensive attributes that stood out against Leicester in May.
Playing in a defence alongside Eric Bailly, Axel Tuanzebe and Brandon Williams, as the oldest player along the United backline, Telles was resolute defensively and took on the role of leader.
The Brazilian international made five tackles, three interceptions, three clearances and blocked one shot (WhoScored). Only Nemanja Matic had more touches (104) than Telles (91) during the match.
Telles did showcase his quality from set pieces with a pacey free kick that Mason Greenwood nearly got on the end of.
First Premier League start for Telles
It was a tad harsh on Telles that after his stunner against Villarreal in the Champions League last month, his first goal for the club, he wasn’t given the chance to build on that with a start against Everton.
Unlike Luke Shaw, Telles wasn’t called up for international duty and with Atalanta and Liverpool to come later in the week, Solskjaer could give Telles a rare start on Saturday.
Although with Raphael Varane and Harry Maguire already ruled out, Solskjaer may not want to ring the changes any further to his first choice back four.
But Telles did alongside Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly together in the Carabao Cup defeat to West Ham.
It’s debatable whether Telles will feature against Leicester but he has already shown during his Manchester United career that he produce a solid performance against the Foxes and be ready when called upon.
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