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Arsenal are after Kieran Tierney this summer and former Burnley boss Owen Coyle thinks he can make a big impression in the English top-flight, as reported by The Scottish Sun.
What’s he said?
The paper reported on Saturday that the Gunners have had a £15m bid for the player rejected by the Scottish champions, who are holding out for a fee around £25m.
That would be a record fee for a player leaving Scotland so there would be massive expectation on Tierney’s shoulders if he does make the move, but former Premier League manager Coyle believes he has the talent required to make it at a big club in England.
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As quoted by The Scottish Sun, the 52-year-old said:
“Kieran is a sensational talent and is only going to get better. Arsenal won’t be the only admirer. Top clubs all over the world will be watching him.
“Every club in England will know how good a player he is. I watch a lot of Premier League football and Kieran could play for any team in the league.
“I truly believe that. He is capable of going into the Man City team — that’s how good he is. You look at Andy Robertson and the impact he has made at Liverpool. Kieran could do the same at a top club in England.
“Scotland have two left-backs who belong in the top bracket of world football in that position. I am so excited to watch him develop because I think he will be even better next season.”
Is Tierney at that level?
It’s a big call to compare Tierney to a recent UEFA Champions League winner like Robertson and the 22-year-old would likely need a season or two in the Premier League, just like the Liverpool defender, to grow and adjust to playing at that level on a consistent basis.
The Celtic left-back has quite the rapport with supporters in Glasgow, being a boyhood fan of the club just like them, and has already won a massive amount of trophies in a pressurised environment.
That popularity is no small part due to his ability though. Tierney is considered to be one of the best young players in Scotland, having won the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year award three years in a row between 2015 and 2018, an award that Andy Robertson has won previously.
With 41 appearances in European competition too, he’s not completely without experience at the top level. The body of evidence in his career so far suggests he could make it in England and Arsenal should be ready to pay Celtic’s asking price this summer.