Mikel Arteta hints Kieran Tierney can revive his Arsenal career, but he must do one thing

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Arsenal parted ways with several fringe players during the summer transfer window, but a move never materialised for Kieran Tierney.

The defender spent last season on loan at Real Sociedad alongside Mikel Merino, but whilst he did occasionally impress, his injury struggles which plagued him during most of his Arsenal career continued to haunt him, and the La Liga side decided not to push for a permanent move.

Tierney picked up a hamstring injury whilst playing for Scotland at Euro 2024, and this has ruled him out of any action since, which prevented a move in the summer window.

The 27-year-old is still at Arsenal, but there has been little indication that he could feature for the club again, until now.

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Mikel Arteta hints at possible Kieran Tierney Arsenal return

Speaking in a press conference ahead of Arsenal’s clash with Leicester, Mikel Arteta was asked whether Tierney could return any time soon, and he hinted that the door is still open for him to play.

“Well first of all, he needs to get fit,” Arteta stated.

“He obviously had a quite nasty injury and he’s recovering. He’s doing really well, he looks much better at the moment, but he’s still a few weeks away and once he’s fit, we will see what his role in the team is.”

Could Kieran Tierney play for Arsenal again?

Arsenal have a lot of options at left-back, with Jurrien Timber returning from injury and Riccardo Calafiori joining in the summer, whilst Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Jakub Kiwior are all above Tierney in the pecking order.

Youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly has also played in the position, and many fans would rather see him given an opportunity in the Carabao Cup than Tierney, should the Scotland star return soon.

Lewis-Skelly is a top talent within the academy, and whilst typically a midfielder, it appears that he could be moulded into an inverted left-back of the style Arteta desires, which prevented Tierney from progressing under the Spaniard.

However, there could still be room for Tierney as a backup. Zinchenko and Tomiyasu are injured, and as the fixtures pile up, Lewis-Skelly could move into his natural midfield position, with Tierney at left-back, in rare games when Arteta shuffles his pack.