Celtic is prepared to compete with Premier League teams for the left-back’s services and is anticipated to make a strong effort to recruit Kieran Tierney from Arsenal.
Tierney is scheduled to depart Arsenal in 2025, either during the January transfer window or, more likely, when his contract in North London ends at the end of this season.
Following Tierney’s departure from Mikel Arteta’s plans in recent campaigns, Arsenal had the opportunity to extend his contract by a another 12 months, but they decided against it.
According to report, Tierney’s hometown club, where he rose through the development ranks and made 170 appearances before joining Arsenal in 2019, is a target for Celtic.
Given his hefty salary at Arsenal, a January transfer may be challenging for Celtic; at this point, insiders believe a summer transfer is more plausible.
Tierney, who spent last season on loan at Real Sociedad, made his first appearance of the season on Wednesday night and impressed in Arsenal’s exciting League Cup victory over Crystal Palace.
The Scotland international has been unavailable for much of his campaign because of a serious hamstring injury he suffered while playing for his country at the European Championships.
He was substituted after 69 minutes against Palace after suffering with cramp on his first competitive appearance since June. A fan favourite, he received a standing ovation from the home crowd and later said it was “amazing” to be back at the Emirates Stadium.
The 27-year-old has fallen down the pecking order at Arsenal in recent seasons following the arrivals of a series of alternative full-backs, including Oleksandr Zinchenko, Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori.
He could yet play a crucial role in his final campaign in north London, however, with Zinchenko, Calafiori and Takehiro Tomiyasu all currently struggling with fitness issues.
“That’s the beauty of football: sometimes it goes in circles,” Arteta said of Tierney on Wednesday. “He had to leave and have a loan spell, after a long, long injury as well and day-by-day has earned the right to get some trust from us again that he could help us, that he could be very important for the team, he could impact the team and tonight, he’s certainly done that.”
