Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney is reportedly on the brink of signing a pre-contract agreement with Celtic, marking an emotional return to the Scottish Premiership champions.
The 27-year-old’s contract at the Emirates Stadium expires this summer, allowing him to negotiate a free transfer for the 2025/26 season.
Despite interest from clubs abroad and in the Premier League, Tierney has opted to return to Parkhead, prioritizing a homecoming over other opportunities.
German Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen, La Liga’s Sevilla, and Serie A giants Juventus all expressed interest in the Scotland international, while Everton were keen to add him to David Moyes’s squad.
However, Tierney is now nearing a deal with Celtic, the club he left six years ago for a £25 million move to Arsenal.
While Tierney appears set for a return, Arsenal’s plans for the remainder of the season remain unclear.
The left-back has featured in three games in January, competing for a spot with other options such as Jakub Kiwior, Riccardo Calafiori, and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Tierney’s time at Arsenal has been punctuated by injuries, including a six-month layoff with a hamstring problem sustained during Euro 2024.
Under Mikel Arteta, who succeeded Unai Emery in Tierney’s debut season at Arsenal, the full-back has often been deployed in a more advanced role. Reflecting on this adjustment, Arteta said:
“He’s playing to his strengths. That’s something that we have to continue to learn, because they give you a lot of information. They tell you, not sometimes with their words, but with a lot of information, where they feel more comfortable and certainly there is a much better fit for him.”
Tierney’s return to Celtic would see him reunite with the club where he first made his mark.
After graduating from the academy, he broke into the first team in 2015, going on to win four league titles and two Scottish Cups. His performances during that time established him as a key figure in Brendan Rodgers’ successful tenure at Celtic.
When asked about Tierney’s potential return, Rodgers remained reserved, stating:
“Kieran was an instrumental part of a really, really successful period when I was here. His talents then took him to another challenge but we’ll be linked with lots of names and with Kieran naturally because of his situation. But we’ll only talk about a player once he’s signed.”
As fans await confirmation, Tierney’s return would undoubtedly be a significant boost for Celtic, bringing experience and quality to Rodgers’ squad as they push for further domestic and European success.