It felt like Celtic fans' worst nightmares were coming true when it was announced that Kieran Tierney was withdrawing from the Scotland squad due to injury. Of course, fitness has always been the only concern surrounding the left-back. That is the biggest reason why things did not pan out for him at Arsenal, and he became available as a free agent this summer, for the Hoops to get a pre-contract agreement done.
Now, Tierney has picked up an injury even before that return takes place. The only silver lining is that the start of the season is quite some distance away and it will give the left-back time to recover from his issue.
Of course, all of that will depend on the nature of the issue. There seems to be a bit of a positive update on that.
Scotland national team boss, Steve Clarke, recently spoke about Tierney's injury. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, he told PLZ Soccer:
"Scott [McTominay] and Kieran both came into camp carrying some little issues over from the season.
“So I think if we had a longer turnaround between the games they might have had a chance but listen, it’s the end of season for those two.
“The most important thing is to have a good rest over the summer and come back flying in the autumn."
Steve Clarke explains Kieran Tierney injury amid Celtic worry
Judging by those comments, it does not feel like there is too much to be concerned about, when it comes to this injury. It sounds more of a precautionary thing.
But then, one has to raise the question, if Tierney had come in carrying issues, why was he played 68 minutes against Iceland? Surely, the coaching staff should have been more careful about the matter.
No matter what the extent, no injury is ever good news, especially when it comes to someone like Tierney, who has a long history of injuries. Let's just hope that he returns to fitness as soon as possible and his Celtic return can take place soon. That is something that all Hoops fans have been waiting for for a while. The return of a hero to Parkhead.