A leading Arsenal media outlet expects Kieran Tierney to have serious conversations over his Gunners future IF his minutes remain limited.
The £25m left-back has been left with a watching brief for much of the English Premier League season with former Manchester City star Oleksandyr Zinchenko earning acclaim for his displays. Onlookers have waxed lyrical about the added dimension brought by the Ukraine star and his knack for moving into midfield to provide the league leaders with something extra.
Tierney remains a vital member of Mikel Arteta's squad and has clocked more game time than Zinchencko across all competitions - earning 1142 minutes to 1090 for Zinchencko who did miss time with injury. But the Scot remains second choice for the biggest games and there was a spell where right-footed Takehiro Tomiyasu earned the nod ahead of the former Celtic star. And there's expectation among those tuned into events in North London over a potential definitive summer for the Scotland international.
Arseblog, in their latest Arsenal update, stated: "If we know anything about him (Tierney), it will be that this is hurting him. He wants to play every minute going, and right now he’s spending more time on the bench than he would like. Come the summer, if things don’t change, you can imagine that there will be a conversation between him and the manager – and as much as he’s a competitor, I don’t think he’ll be keen to spend another season in the same situation."
Tierney likely won't be short of suitors, of course, with Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti a major admirer a long-standing admirer and a host of sides from the leading leagues in world football have long retained an interest in him. And Arseblog expect significant talks to take place if the situation doesn't shift in before the end of the current campaign.
They added: "My gut feeling though is that the Zinchenko preference, plus the fact there have been times this season when Mikel Arteta has preferred Takehiro Tomiyasu at left-back even when Tierney is fit, suggests this is something that will come a head at the end of the season. Then the question becomes, how do ensure we continue to have that impressive depth in a key position? It’s great to have two quality players for each position, but quality players always want to play and two into one etc etc."
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