It’s the return every Celtic fan has been waiting for.
Kieran Tierney’s Celtic return was made official on Tuesday, after his exit from Arsenal and ahead of his contract expiring at the end of June.
Scott Brown was one man who watched Tierney grow up and become a fan favourite among Celtic Park supporters.
The former midfielder captained the left-back in Glasgow before he headed for the exit door in 2019 and secured a record-breaking transfer to Arsenal.
Aside from someone like Brendan Rodgers, not many people know Tierney’s game and character better than Brown himself.
And it’s fair to say that Brown was delighted that Tierney is back in Celtic colours.
Scott Brown reacts to Kieran Tierney’s return to Celtic from Arsenal
At the age of 27, Brown rightfully pointed out that Tierney is ‘nowhere near coming to the end of his career’, and how he is a ‘really good fit’ for Celtic.
But Brown thinks that the all-action left-back is going to be Celtic’s ‘next captain’, and he can see Rodgers making that call down the line.
Of course, Brown wore the armband himself for many years, and now Callum McGregor is doing a wonderful job as skipper.
“He’s a very, very good character in and about the place. Everyone loves him because he gives 110%,” Brown told BBC Scotland.
“You can see how good he’s got going down the road, working with even better players as well, playing in the Champions League, then going away to Spain.
“It’s a really good fit for the club and also a really good fit for him as well. He’s nowhere near coming to the end of his career.
“He’s still got a long, long way to go and he’ll probably say, ‘Can I go and win trophies? Can I go and show I’m a top-quality player?’.
“It’s probably the best move Celtic’s made. Looking at Kieran, Brendan Rodgers got the best out of him before, he knows what he’s like. I’m sure he probably tried to sign him when he was down at Leicester as well. You can see longer term, Kieran will probably be next Celtic captain.”
Tierney’s record under Brendan Rodgers
Tierney won 11 trophies during his time in Glasgow, and now he will want to climb that table and become one of Celtic’s all-time decorated players.
The Scotland star played over 100 games under Rodgers, including winning Trebles for fun, and dominating the domestic scene like never before.
| Tierney’s games under Rodgers | Goals | Assists |
| 127 | 7 | 29 |
Of course, Celtic missed out on the Treble during the recently concluded campaign, and you won’t put it past this team to put it right next term.
At the end of the day, the past two seasons have suggested that Celtic aren’t far off from doing it.
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