Kieran Tierney looks set to say goodbye to Celtic and sign for Arsenal on Thursday.
The English top-flight’s transfer window closes at 5pm with Tierney likely to be one of the big movers on Deadline Day. The 22-year-old’s departure has been met with acceptance, good will and frustration from different sections of the Celtic support. However, one thing that nobody can debate is the full-back’s influence during his time at the club.
If Tierney does move on he will do so after playing 170 matches for the club he loves. The full-back scored a total of eight goals but, far more significantly, won ten trophies in four glorious seasons.
There are far too many amazing Tierney moments to list, but we did our best to choose three that stood out most.
Manchester City “goal” (2016)
It’s bizarre that one of Tierney’s biggest goals for Celtic wasn’t even his goal. The moment belonged to supreme Manchester City and England talent Raheem Sterling.
The young winger was the man who diverted the ball into his own net after a surging Tierney run in Celtic’s 3-3 draw with Pep Guardiola’s side in 2016. It was a crowning moment for Tierney on a night that showed he could mix it with the best.
The joy on his face when the ball found the net was like any of us would have felt scoring for Celtic. Well, kind of scoring.
Captain against Kilmarnock (2017)
Tierney realised a lifelong dream when he captained Celtic in a Betfred Cup clash against Kilmarnock in August 2017. The left-back was terrific as he led the Hoops to a 5-0 win against the Ayrshire side.
He even netted the fourth goal on the night – a remarkable swerving strike from close to 40 yards. This one was definitely his goal. No doubt about that.
Strangely enough, that great night was exactly two years prior to the day he’s expected to complete his move to Arsenal. Football can be a strange game.
The Scottish Cup Final (2017)
Tierney wasn’t even on the pitch when Celtic clinched their first treble in almost two decades in 2017. The youngster had started the clash against Aberdeen at Hampden but had to be taken off after 27 minutes.
Tierney was clattered by a swinging Jayden Stockley arm and rushed to hospital. His cup final was over – except it wasn’t really. Amazingly, the youngster found his way back to Hampden just in time to be part of the celebrations after his replacement Tom Rogic had netted a dramatic winner.
The image of Tierney going up to lift the cup – probably still dozed by some hospital drugs – and beating the Celtic badge will live long in the memory. It was a special moment.
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