Out of favour Kieran Tierney could see an injury scupper his chances of leaving Arsenal once again.
The left-back has been at the centre of speculation over a return to Celtic with the Premiership champions reportedly monitoring the Scotland defender after he had been given the green light to leave the Emirates on loan in January by Mikel Arteta. It has been claimed that Tierney – who spent last season on loan at Real Sociedad – would have been allowed to leave permanently last summer had he not picked up a hamstring at Euro 2024.
Speculation over an emotional move back to Glasgow’s east end shifted up a gear when Brendan Rodgers was spotted chatting to the 27-year-old at the club charity foundation’s annual gala in London. But a move away from the Premier League giants could be on the backburner again with Arsenal facing another left-back crisis.
Riccardo Calafiori limped off during the 1-0 Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk and Gunners boss suspects a long-term absence: “With Riccardo, he had to come off because he felt something. I don’t know the extent of it so in that sense that’s not great news.”
With Oleksandr Zinchenko still working his way up to full fitness after an injury-hampered start to the season, teenage left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly replaced the Italian. With Tierney closing in on a return to fitness he could be viewed as cover at the back – leaving potential suitors frozen out of a deal.
Asked about the meeting with Tierney, Celtic boss Rodgers was coy over the chat stating: “It was great to see him. I’ve always been in contact with Kieran, when we were both down there. It was really nice to see him.
“Obviously, he has been out injured, so it was a nice touch by the club to invite him. He was a great player for this club and it’s unfortunate how it’s gone for him at Arsenal with his injury and stuff. But it doesn’t take much now to get tongues wagging!”
With rumours swirling around the arrival of Tierney, a transfer windfall for another left-back could be making his way to to Celtic Park. Internacional have claimed they are ramping up talks over a permanent deal for Alexandro Bernabei – with the Hoops standing firm on their valuation of the 24-year-old.
Celtic spent £3.75m they spent on the Argentine back in 2022 and club president at the Brazilian club Alessandro Barcellos has revealed the club are looking to recoup that. He told Radio Grenal: “We still need to work with the club that owns his rights, either to extend the loan, or whatever the case may be. There has already been a conversation with the player’s agent, with the player himself, who expressed an interest in staying and this is very important in the process.
“We hope to have a conclusion, but this will only happen, most likely, towards the end of the year. The financial amount requested is considerably high. Nevertheless, we are exploring alternatives to secure his services. The fee is significantly above the £3.3m that had been speculated.”