Kieran Tierney was unlucky last season, not playing for Arsenal as much as he hoped. After a disappointing finish to the 2021–22 season, where Arsenal missed out on finishing in the top 4, Mikel Arteta decided to make some changes in his squad, one of which was to recruit Ukrainian left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko.
In the move to recruit the Manchester City star, Arteta had a new tactical switch in mind: he wanted to play a system where his full-back (the left back in this case) drifts to midfield in possession and thus gives all the attacking midfielders the leverage to solely focus on attacking.
This tactical switch saw Kieran Tierney, a flying full-back, lose his place in Arteta’s starting lineup as he wasn’t suitable for playing as an inverted left-back. The Scotland international was transformed from a mainstay in Arsenal’s lineup to a fringe player.
As the 2022–23 season went by, many advised him to leave, and clubs showed interest in taking him on board. Fortunately, the ex-Celtic man has sealed a loan exit from Arsenal and joined Real Sociedad. Days after joining the Spanish side, he had a sit-down with the media, and one of the things he had to address was why he left Arsenal, and if he had any feelings about his frustrations at Arsenal last season.
Gooners love Tierney. He isn’t a fan favourite for nothing, and his admission of why he left Arsenal says it all. The left-back admits he had to leave Arsenal for much-needed game time, but he doesn’t have ill feelings about the club, as he said: “I left because last season I couldn’t play a lot, and what I wanted was to play a lot of games, and I wanted to try to do it at Real. I don’t have any problem with Arsenal.”
He also admitted he is training hard and is already adapting to the demands of his new coach, saying, “I think I can identify with hard work. I’ve been training for three days, and the intensity of the coach and my teammates is incredible. Olabe and Bretos told me that the training sessions were very hard; that’s what I like to do.”
Let’s all hope he gets his wish and comes back next summer fit as a fiddle.
Darren N
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