Kieran Tierney sends heartfelt message to Celtic fans

Kieran Tierney’s £25 million move to Arsenal earlier in the summer must have left a sour taste in the mouths of a number of Celtic fans. Now the new Arsenal left-back has come out and sent a heartfelt message to his former fans, hoping to rebuild the bridges that were burned.

Kieran Tierney is certainly starting to settle in at Arsenal after spending the first month on the sidelines recovering from an injury and put in an impressive display in their 4-0 win over Standard Liege in the Europa League. But that will not be news to Celtic fans, who saw the 22-year old feature in PFA Scotland’s Team of the Year in three consecutive seasons during his time at Parkhead.

Tierney joined Celtic when he was just 7 years old and came through the club’s development system to become a mainstay in the team as a teenager. Naturally he became a cult figure among the fans and was someone they had hoped would stay at the club for life, going on to achieve legendary status in the process.

That was not to be though after Tierney decided to join Arsenal after a 2018/19 season marred by injuries. His fitness issues must have surely played a role in his decision as it would have shown him the unstable nature of a career in football and the need to make the most of it. Ultimately, Tierney’s ambition and the Premier League’s riches won over the loyalty towards his boyhood club.

But the Scottish international is afraid that the move might have destroyed the connection that he had shared with Celtic fans. Speaking with The Scottish Sun, Tierney said:

"“I don’t know if it will pass, some fans probably won’t ever forgive me.“Everyone has their choice, some people will support me and others won’t.“I just want to say thanks to everyone who supported me at Celtic.“I couldn’t have got the move to Arsenal without their support and love. I gave Celtic 15 years.“I put my body through a lot by playing through injuries.“I gave everything I could every single day – Hopefully they will continue to support me but, if not, I just have to deal with that.”"

It is quite clear that the Hoops fans still mean a lot to the 22-year-old who spent two-thirds of his life representing the club. And while his move did not go down well with a certain portion of the support, most understood the decision had to be taken keeping his career in mind. Hopefully, Tierney can return to Celtic Park one day and hang up his boots where they were meant to be.