Pat Nevin has tipped former Celtic hero Kieran Tierney to become one of the world’s best. The ex-Chelsea man-turned-pundit has claimed that he thinks the left-back is a better player than Andy Robertson and is yet to reach his full potential.
Tierney has been linked with Barcelona and Real Madrid in recent weeks as his form with Arsenal hasn’t gone unnoticed. The former Celtic hero scored his first goal for his country in the 1-1 draw with Poland.
As reported by The Sun, Nevin has said that he thinks Tierney would be able to adapt to a new club as interest in him will heat up in the coming weeks.
“If Kieran did join Real Madrid then I’m convinced he would have no problem fitting in there — he wouldn’t need time to settle or adjust.
“He’s good enough to join any club in the world and hit the ground running.
“Andy Robertson is a fabulous full-back, so I’m not criticising him in any way when I say Tierney is the better all-round player of the two.
“It’s probably the first time since Kenny Dalglish and Graeme Souness in the 1980s when we’ve had two Scots capable of playing for the best teams around.”
The left-back made over 170 appearances for Celtic, winning five league titles and three League Cups and Scottish Cups during his time whilst enjoying hero status with supporters as being ‘one of us’. The former Celtic defender left the Scottish Champions in the summer of 2019 for a fee in the region of £25m, becoming the most expensive Scottish export. You have to imagine that Tierney, who has made over 85 appearances for Arsenal, is worth over the £50m mark. Nevin suggests that Pep Guardiola may benefit from signing the full-back to bolster their side.
“Once you’ve reached the level he’s attained then money doesn’t come into it – he’ll get at least as much as Arsenal can offer him if he moves somewhere else.
“For him, it’ll all be about what he can win from now on. He’s the main reason that Arsenal are a top-four team right now.
“Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka have had great seasons but Kieran is their Player of the Year by a mile and the fans love him.
“Personally, I think Manchester City would be the perfect club for him.
“They have a brilliant squad but are a bit short in two positions – left-back and centre-forward – and Pep Guardiola is a serial winner.
“He spent £100m to sign Jack Grealish from Aston Villa so he’d easily be able to meet Arsenal’s price. Plus, if they finally win the Champions League this season then how do you strengthen the best team in Europe? Signing Kieran would be a good start.
Celtic will, as they always have for exports, a sell-on fee meaning that if rebuilding Barca or Real Madrid came in for him, Celtic could stand to make a fortune from the player. It is expected that there is a 15-20% of profit from the deal sell-on clause, which is eye-watering when you consider some of the fees in football. Nevin believes that Tierney can progress to a stage whereby he can be considered for the Ballon D’Or, an incredible claim but one that you wouldn’t bet against given Tierney’s astonishing rise.
“He hasn’t peaked yet, which is quite frightening.
“When I first met him he was a confident boy but he’s subsequently gone beyond that to have this total and utter belief in himself and you can see it by the way he carries himself on the pitch: you just think: ‘He’s got it.’
“Kieran is already one of the best footballers on the planet. He’s more than comfortable in the Premier League, which means he could play anywhere. I genuinely believe he can go on to win the Ballon d’Or.
“Only one defender – Fabio Cannavarro, who captained the Italian World Cup-winning side in 2006 – has ever won that prize but it’s not impossible for KT to emulate him.
“For that to happen three things need to happen. First, he has to be playing for one of the biggest clubs and winning trophies. Secondly, he has to avoid being around at the same time as geniuses like Maradona or Lionel Messi or goal machines like Cristiano Ronaldo.
“Finally, he has to offer something different and the way he’s combining his attacking instincts with intelligence in that centre-back role means that’s already happening.”
It is also a boost for Celtic as it showcases to any youngsters coming to the club that there is a pathway for Academy talents, with Tierney progressing to the very top. Andy Robertson can also be used as an example but his route was less linear than Tierney’s but both involved hard work. Tierney’s USP is the ability to play at both left-back, LWB and left central defender.
Tierney will likely know that he has the talent at his disposal to get himself to the very top of the game, his ambition to leave Celtic proves that he can be clinical when he needs to be and take emotion out of decisions. This could very well leave him in a position where he chases silverware over remaining a star with Arsenal. Arteta’s side are now in the top four with a few games in hand, a crack at The Champions League will certainly be on his mind but should the 13-time European Cup winners come calling, it would be a straightforward choice.
