Medical expert: Kieran Tierney will be ‘gutted’ by Arsenal injury update
Arsenal star Kieran Tierney will be “gutted” that he has missed out on the chance to represent his country in a crucial block of international fixtures.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Tierney, 24, underwent surgery on a knee injury in April.
The former Celtic man was not named in the Scotland squad for the upcoming World Cup play-off campaign.
As quoted by The Scotsman on Monday (23 May), Scotland boss Steve Clarke revealed that the left-back is now focused squarely on his rehab ahead of pre-season with Arsenal.
Clarke’s side face Ukraine in the semi-finals of the play-off programme, and they could meet either Wales or Poland in the final.
Dinnery sympathised with Tierney for missing out on such a significant occasion.
“It is such a high-pressure, big game,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“He doesn’t come across as the type of player who picks and chooses the games he plays in. He’s very much an all-or-nothing player.
“Arteta has been very supportive of his players going away on international duty. He has been a player and understands the pride of representing your country.
“There are two sides to this coin. From a selfish standpoint, you want to keep Tierney fully rested and focused on pre-season.
“But then, also, he will be gutted. And, had he been close to a return, maybe those competitive minutes would have stood him in good stead.”
Tierney’s 25 appearances in 2021-22 yielded one goal and three assists.
Nuno Tavares has generally played at left-back during his enforced absence action at Arsenal.
In other news, pundit expects Arsenal to “prioritise” £25million signing over Ruben Neves after journalist’s update.