There aren’t many players more popular than Celtic hero Kieran Tierney.
That popularity has gone to another level after Scotland finally booked their World Cup ticket and reached football’s biggest stage for the first time since 1998.
Tierney scored Scotland’s winning goal in stoppage time to send Scotland to North America next summer, and it has got a lot of people talking.
With domestic football returning this weekend, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was asked about Tierney’s week to remember, and he issued a classy response.
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Celtic hero Kieran Tierney after his Scotland goal v Denmark - FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifier
Photo by Alex Livesey – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Mikel Arteta on Kieran Tierney’s Scotland heroics
Even though Tierney left Arsenal this summer, he is still much-loved at the London club, and that was portrayed in Arteta’s presser by a reporter.
Arteta stated that he is ‘very happy’ for Tierney, as well as Scotland as a nation, after the Arsenal boss spent several years playing in Glasgow for Rangers.
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Journalist: “Just very quickly, just on Kieran Tierney during the international break, he is still so loved here by the fans, and he had such a special, special moment for Scotland. What were your thoughts when you saw that goal?”
Arteta: “Well, very happy for him, and very happy for all the Scottish people as well. I lived there for two years. I had an amazing experience, and I fell in love with their passion and how they treat people.
“So, I am very happy for the country.”
There have been generations of fans waiting for Scotland to reach the World Cup, and at the age of 28, this was probably Tierney’s last chance, in terms of him being at the peak of his powers.
But after the injury issues Tierney has been through, mainly at Arsenal, this moment makes it even sweeter, and all that time on the sidelines is now worthwhile.