NafisaBrendan Rodgers feels the return of prodigal son Kieran Tierney to Celtic can elevate the club to even higher levels of achievement.
Tierney, 27, is set to complete a dream switch back to his childhood heroes from Arsenal this summer.
The Irishman maintains that Celtic are getting a player whose peak footballing years are still ahead of him after four seasons honing his skills in the self-proclaimed top league in the world — the English Premier League.
Rodgers saw Tierney come on at the Santiago Bernabeu as a late substitute in the 2-1 Champions League win over Real Madrid earlier this week, as the Gunners thrashed the Spaniards 5-1 on aggregate across both legs to secure a place in the semi-finals.
The victory also kept Tierney’s Champions League ambitions very much alive as Mikel Arteta’s side aim to win the competition for the first time ever and book their first final since 2006.
The 52-year-old said: “When Kieran comes back, irrelevant of experiences, we will improve as a squad by having him here, of course. I’m just really pleased for him. Watching Arsenal in midweek, it was a fantastic performance over the two legs.
“To see him be involved in that, it’s a great experience for him. The last couple of months will be a really exciting couple of months for him.
“I know what we’re getting with Kieran. We’ll get back a player with great experience. Because when you work in the Premier League, every single week for four years, it’s like a big European game in the main.
“It’s so challenging, so testing, and he’s had a number of years of that. We’re getting him back at a brilliant age.
“Hopefully, he can help this squad achieve a lot more.”
Elsewhere, Rodgers shared that he hasn’t given up hope of seeing both Tierney and Greg Taylor feature in the Celtic lineup next season.
However, he pointed out that while both players operate at left-back, they are essentially very different, although Tierney is capable of playing the inverted Taylor role if needed.
Rodgers said: “No, no, Kieran plays his role. He’s a different type of player. He can do that, of course. He can jump on the inside and be outside. I was in contact with him in the week, and I’m saying our wingers are very scared now!
“He can play on the left side, and he can play on the right side. No, I think he can play that role, but he has different strengths and different qualities. That’s also the part of when you’re trying to build a squad, you’re trying to have different strengths within it.
“So, Kieran has his qualities of pace and power and running ability, and also, there’s a passion for the club. He can’t wait to be here. We also need a squad of players, and for me, it can dovetail perfectly with, say, someone like Greg here, but we have to wait and see.”
Nafisa
