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Kieran Tierney has been urged to return to Celtic by Joe Ledley, although he has asked the Scotland International to fight for his place at the Emirates.
THE LOWDOWN: PART OF THE GROUP
Tierney has seen his playing time reduced a whole lot by the arrival of Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City in the summer. The Ukrainian has been handed starts in more Premier League games than the Scottish International.
Despite all of that, he has been able to feature frequently in the Europa League as well as other cup competitions under Mikel Arteta. In total, he has amassed 24 appearances across all competitions so far this season.
However, reports have linked him with a move away from the Emirates due to insufficient playing time in the League and he has now been advised to stay put.
THE LATEST: PUNDIT’S ADVICE
Joe Ledley is hopeful that Kieran Tierney will return to Celtic one day but has urged the Arsenal fullback to fight for a starting XI spot at the Emirates.
The 25-year-old joined Arsenal from Celtic back in 2019 and he is hugely loved by Arsenal fans.
On his situation with the Gunners, Ledley shared his thoughts with Grosvenor Sport: “Everyone I talk to who is into Arsenal always raves about Tierney and says how good he is and what he has done for the club but it’s always difficult when the manager brings someone in for your position. It’s hard to get it back, but from the club’s point of view, it’s great competition.
“Arsenal are doing so well at the moment, so sometimes you’ve just got to bide your time. From a selfish point of view, you need a bit of luck, like an injury to another player so I would say he should fight it out and not think about leaving because he’s learning even more working under Mikel Arteta.
“But I would love to see him back at Celtic one day because he has that fantastic bond with the fans. He’s a massive fan himself, so hopefully, he returns in the future.”
THE VERDICT: WELL SAID
It has not been really bad in terms of appearances for Tierney under Arteta this term. He has played 15 of the Gunners’ 19 Premier League games and started every Europa League group-stage game last year.
He clearly wants more starting berths but with the quality that Zinchenko provides, he will have to be patient and keep working hard for the squad.
