Arsenal: 3 things Kieran Tierney must improve to cement starting role

1. Aggression

One very noticeable aspect of Bukayo Saka’s time at left-back was his fearlessness and aggression. Didn’t matter the opponent, didn’t matter that he was playing out of position, didn’t matter that he was younger than everybody else on the field. He just went out there and worked and hassled and harried, often to the point of visible frustration etched on the faces of the opponents.

This aggression and mindset is something Tierney would do well to learn, especially in order to beat Saka out for the spot. It works naturally with his style of play, pace, and crossing ability, but also in tandem with his teammates—the defensive workrates of Gabriel Martinelli, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and yes Saka are something to behold. Having a treacherous left side could easily eliminate the heavy firepower of teams like Sheffield United and Wolves, who function best down the right flanks with their own combinations of wingers and wing-backs, and who are in direct competition with the Gunners for the top 6 spots.

And in terms of Mikel Arteta’s tactical setup, aggression is almost key. As Arteta delves further into his rather Guardiola-esque pressing scheme, the fullbacks have played a significant role—Hector Bellerin’s lack of match sharpness was on full display in the somewhat rusty series of performances he put out after returning from injury, and the comparatively fresh-faced Saka was a much more productive member of the squad during the same time. Tierney won’t be coming back with the same level of sluggishness, but he must make sure that he presses and runs with the aggression and fearlessness necessary for the position.

Tierney has had a good spell of training to get his fitness back, and in the recent videos released by the club, the coaches have been praising his work ethic and precise passing. “KT” has a future at the club, and this restart is going to give him a cracking opportunity to prove himself.

But it’s going to be tricky. Starting with a Wednesday night at the Etihad, and continuing onwards, he’s going to have to bust his butt to cement his place in the Starting XI. He has all the tools in place. He just has to learn how to use them.