Manchester City are eyeing a move for Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney as a potential option this summer, according to reports from The Scotsman. It comes amid reported interest from the Gunners in City’s own Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The Ukrainian could be one of a number of incomings for Mikel Arteta as the manager looks to revitalise his squad going into next season. The previous campaign saw the Spaniard go close to a return to the Champions League, but they narrowly missed out to North London rivals Tottenham.
Arsenal will be hoping they can make another push, with the transfer window offering the chance to strengthen once again. With a deal for Marquinhos already completed, two more appear close to being announced with Matt Turner and Fabio Vieira expected to join the club, whilst Eddie Nketiah signed a new long-term deal to kickstart the busy summer.
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A number of versatile options have been linked with a move to Arsenal, with Manchester City trio Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling and Oleksandr Zinchenko all reportedly of interest. The latter has been praised heavily by Pep Guardiola in the past, who said in 2019: "Incredible is the only thing I can say, Oleks has showed me the importance and value of being a good guy.
"At the beginning of the season he was close to making a transfer, and I never saw him have one bad face or had a bad training session from him. Some players want to show me how disappointed they are, but Zinchenko is the complete opposite. When this happens, you are always going to play good. He is going to have a long career, here [at Manchester City] hopefully."
If Arsenal’s interest in the versatile player is concrete, then reports of interest from City for Tierney as a potential alternative to Brighton’s Marc Cucurella. Tierney had been a standout player for the Gunners, but his struggles with injury saw him start only just over half of the Premier League season.
This left Arteta searching for a solution to fill his void, something that is continuing into the summer transfer market with links to full-backs that would offer better depth. It remains to be seen whether he would be free to leave the club though, with a contract until 2026 and his importance clear when he is missing.
