Arsenal Vs Southampton: 5 key players to watch – Attack, anyone?

3. Kieran Tierney

In the summer, Arsenal splashed £25 million on a defender who had never played in a top-five European League in his career. They did this because there is a great importance in having a modern, athletic, powerful full-back.

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Kieran Tierney, the man that fetched a record price in Scottish football, is all of these things. He is the ideal, modern-day full-back. Quick, a great engine to bound up and down the pitch, composed in possession, a strong tackler and capable defender. He is the complete player. And yet, so far this season, Unai Emery has been cautious to unleash his latest toy.

Now, a part of this stalled introduction has been Tierney’s sports hernia injury that he was recovering from when he first arrived. Tierney missed the first two months of the season and was still developing match sharpness in the third. However, now nearly in December, he should be getting up to speed sufficiently for Emery to throw him in the deep end.

A match against Southampton is the ideal game for Tierney to start. Arsenal will dominate the ball. This helps Tierney in two ways: firstly, he will not be too strenuously tested defensively; secondly, his offensive prowess should come to the fore. Tierney will be afforded the freedom to push into advanced areas and create chances from wide areas. This is what he is best at, and he should be able to conduct it frequently on Saturday.