What Arsenal Fans Are Saying About Kieran Tierney After Return vs Crystal Palace

After an early scare, courtesy of a fourth-minute Jean-Philippe Mateta strike, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal managed to defeat fellow London side Crystal Palace 3-2 in the League Cup on Wednesday evening – and fans are raving about one man in particular.

Gabriel Jesus bagged a second half hat-trick on home soil to keep his side’s silverware aspirations alive and well, while Eddie Nketiah, coming back to haunt his former employers, scored a consolation with five minutes of regulation time on the clock.

And while the out-of-sorts Brazilian will grab the headlines, Kieran Tierney has also been on the minds of the club’s faithful, beyond pleased to see the tenacious full-back – who has notched five goals and 13 assists in 124 games for Arsenal – back on the turf.

Isle of Man-born Tierney had not played a minute for the north Londoners in 500 days but was named, as Arteta opted for a heavily rotated starting XI, as the club’s starting left-back as they secure passage into the semi-finals.

The Scot, who enjoyed a season with Real Sociedad in 2023/24, only managed to last until the 69th minute before being substituted in favour of Myles Lewis-Skelly. He hit the turf and was treated by the medical team.

Before leaving the fray, the 27-year-old enjoyed 63 touches of the ball – two of which were inside Palace’s box – and racked up a pass accuracy rate of 91% (38/47). Something notable is that he completed nine passes into the final third (an Arsenal joint-best with Mikel Merino).

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Remaining defensively sound, the 46-cap Scotland international won 50% of his tackles and racked up a clearance and an interception apiece. He also won 100% of his duels (2/2 on the ground and 1/1 in the air).

David Ornstein, after the game, dropped the news that Tierney is set to leave in the summer after Arsenal have decided against using the option to extend his contract – but, for now, supporters are relishing his long awaited return to action, albeit in the League Cup, donning Arsenal colours.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), one cited his willingness to complete marauding runs from deep in the left-back position: “Tierney overlapping bombing runs… I got my joy back.”

“Got to score but vintage Tierney man… I’ve missed that, a bit of variety finally.” another said while one fan added: “One Tierney overlap and cross changed this entire performance. Simple.

A fifth fan labelled him a ‘proper left-back’: “Kieran Tierney at left-back provides extra width on the offensive end by hugging the touchline and whipping crosses from the wing. A proper left-back. A wonderful return to the team.”

All statistics per Sofascore – correct as of 18/12/24