Of course, the individual is none other than Kieran Tierney, as news broke last night from David Ornstein of The Athletic that Arsenal had opted not to extend his current contract, which expires next summer. With the January transfer window just a couple of weeks away, the former Celtic left-back will be free to talk to potential suitors when it opens for business next month.
Tierney is still regarded as a hero amongst the support, over five years since he swapped Glasgow for North London for £25 million – a Celtic record at the time. Making 170 appearances across five trophy-filled years at the club, the full-back got his hands on eight domestic honours, as well as European and international exposure following his debut in 2015 under Ronny Deila. A lifelong Celtic fan, Tierney embodied those in the stands out on the pitch, who idolised the academy graduate living their collective dream.
Signed by now-Aston Villa manager Unai Emery for Arsenal in the summer of 2019 – just a few months after the departure of Brendan Rodgers – Tierney has made a total of 125 appearances in all competitions for the London giants, though his time at the club has been admittedly mixed – mostly due to injuries.
Rebuilding in Spain from the Arsenal fringes
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In search of regular first-team football, the Scotland stalwart (when fit) moved abroad to sign for Real Sociedad on loan from Arsenal in 2023. Making 21 total appearances for the Basque side, Tierney contributed two goals for his temporary employers, though injuries curtailed the defender from being an ever-present for Imanol Alguacil’s team, who finished 6th in La Liga.
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Indeed, two hamstring and adductor injuries respectively limited his availability for selection – a common theme throughout his ‘prime years’ of professional football. However, he did manage to play against the ‘Big Three’ of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, though he was on the losing side in all three games for Sociedad against Spain’s elite. He also made two appearances in the Champions League – both against Inter Milan.
FotMob data shows that Tierney was in 81st percentile or above when it comes to tackles won, duels won and assists per 90 compared to his La Liga left-back peers. That suggests that when he was playing, he was his usual combative self.
Prior to this move, Tierney had been a bit-part player under current manager Mikel Arteta, who elected to pick new signing Oleksandr Zinchenko ahead of the Scotland international – perhaps due to his ability to play inverted like he did at Manchester City the previous campaign prior to his big-money move to the capital.
Making just 15 starts – many of them in the Europa League or the domestic cups – one of Celtic’s best modern exports found himself benched for the first time in his career. This was a far cry from the previous season when Arteta started him 24 times before his season was prematurely ended due to – you guessed it – an injury – this time, his knee.
When looking at the numbers, it is clear that KT’s best season for the Gunners was his second – right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite two separate knee injuries, he managed to start a total of 32 games for his club, as well as featuring for Scotland heavily in both qualifiers and the rearranged EURO 2020. These past three years or so have not been kind to the left-back on the injury front.
The unavoidable injury narrative
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Unfortunately, the words ‘Tierney’ and ‘injuries’ go hand in hand when discussing the 27-year-old, as his career has been blighted by setbacks concerning his physical health. Indeed, Tierney joined Arsenal injured, as he missed the final few months of his Celtic career – including clinching the ‘Treble Treble’ – due to a double hernia injury and groin surgery respectively.
A quick glance at the injury history section on transfermarkt.com underlines just how many setbacks the passionate defender has suffered in his professional career.
From his shoulder to his knees, ankles and hamstrings, Tierney has been desperately unlucky, as his body has struggled immensely to keep up with the physical demands of the ever-growing football fixture schedule. 18 injuries have been documented on the website, as the total number of games missed is estimated at 161 – that is a lot of football to miss out on, especially at his age.
A potential future at Celtic
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With Celtic’s interest in a potential reunion between themselves and their beloved former number 63 seemingly concrete, what would this mean for the future of the left-back position? Funnily enough, Tierney’s direct replacement at Celtic is in exactly the same position as he is, with Greg Taylor’s contract due to expire next June, also.
A stalwart since his arrival back in 2019 on Deadline Day, Taylor has reportedly been offered a new deal, though the former Kilmarnock full-back has yet to agree on terms of an extension. With Alex Valle only on loan until the summer with no option to buy and Alexandro Bernabei close to a permanent exit to Internacional in Brazil, the left-back area seems to be clearing perfectly for a Tierney return.
Earning as much as £120k-per-week at his current employers, Tierney would have to take a substantial pay cut in order to make this possibility a reality. Even still, the club would likely have to enlist the services of a second left-back in order to cover the Celtic hero’s unavoidable injury concerns, which are a reality at this stage of his career. Could Valle be that cover? Would he want to be second-choice, even with the prospect of extended game time? Would Barcelona even entertain a bid at this stage?
Through all that, the prospect of seeing Tierney back in the green and white hoops of Celtic is an exciting prospect. When fully fit, there are no doubts that the homegrown talent is a top, top operator. Regardless of where he ends up, this is sure to be an exciting few months in the professional career of Kieran Tierney as he looks to move on from a difficult situation in London.
Celtic eyes will be watching on closely in the new year.