Arsenal exit brings striking Kieran Tierney fitness turnaround

Arsenal exit brings striking Kieran Tierney fitness turnaround

Kieran Tierney appears to have overcome the injury problems that blighted his time at Arsenal, enjoying a stellar season with more minutes than most current Arsenal players.

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Most Arsenal fans, when asked, will have quite a few select Kieran Tierney memories.

There’s the shopping bag, the short sleeves in the snow, his bangers from range and, of course, the injuries that ruined his time at the club.

Looking at his history when he first arrived in London, I remember wondering if he had a problem with staying fit. He had, after all, just missed a bucketload of games for Celtic within the space of a few months. Signing for Arsenal in 2019, he was already suffering from a groin problem that needed surgery after proving stubborn.

Within months, he was out for 18 games with a shoulder problem that also required surgery. He would later describe that injury as the ‘toughest time of my life mentally”.

Hamstrings, adductors, knees, and ankles all followed the groin and shoulder issue.

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In total, for club and country while at Arsenal, Tierney missed 78 games, and a further 21 when on loan with Real Sociedad before he left permanently in the summer of 2025 on a free.

He played a total of 144 times, scoring six and assisting 14.

This season, however, Tierney has shown the sort of fitness consistency that was so sorely missing at Arsenal.

He has played 48 times across all competitions so far, a total of 3,497 minutes. Only five Arsenal players have more minutes.

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Tierney has been in every single Celtic squad, except one, starting 42, and scoring as many as he did during his entire time with Arsenal.

He is also just three assists short of his total as a Gunner, with games still to play.