Arsenal defender Kieran Tierney spent the season on loan at La Liga side Real Sociedad, but his future is now far from clear.
Tierney has admitted that he enjoyed his time at Real Sociedad in the Basque Country, but whilst he did impress at times, his injury problems continued, scuppering his chances of succeeding in his fresh start.
Mikel Arteta already has four other left-backs at his disposal at Arsenal, and could be set to sign another as Jorrel Hato and Ferdi Kadioglu have been linked.
It seems certain that Tierney will end up departing Arsenal this summer, but what is not certain is where he will end up, as Real Sociedad are now targeting his replacement.
Real Sociedad eye up Sergio Gomez to replace Arsenal loannee Kieran Tierney
Fabrizio Romano has now revealed that Real Sociedad want Manchester City flop Sergio Gomez to replace Tierney, with the defender now set to return to Arsenal from Spain.
“Sergio Gomez, the left-back of Manchester City, is top of the list for Real Sociedad as new left-back. Kieran Tierney is returning to Arsenal and I expect him to leave Arsenal in the summer transfer window,” he stated on his YouTube channel.
Tierney made 26 appearances across all competitions for Real Sociedad, including two in the Champions League, but he will now have to find a more permanent solution with regard to his future.
Arsenal need to sell Kieran Tierney this summer
Despite his previous popularity at the club, Arsenal need to sell Tierney permanently this summer. His value is only likely to decrease as he runs down his contract, and the unfortunate reality is that another loan spell may do him no favours with regard to his transfer market valuation.
Tierney’s injury problems are his biggest concern. Whilst he does not suit Arteta’s system as a more traditional left-back rather than an inverted one like Oleksandr Zinchenko, he does have enough quality to succeed elsewhere, but clubs are unlikely to take a risk on such an injury-prone player.
Given his wage and injury issues, Arsenal may end up making a fairly sizeable loss on Tierney, who arrived from Celtic five years ago as a top prospect, impressed for a while but ultimately failed to fulfil his vast potential in North London.