Tierney on the verge of Arsenal exit after CRUCIAL Arteta decision

Cameron Smith

• 21 May 2023 12:30 BST
• 3 min read

Kieran Tierney's chances of staying at Arsenal have been diminished even further following their 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest on Saturday night.

The Scottish international was omitted from the starting XI at the City Ground, despite Oleksandr Zinchenko's injury, with Jakub Kiwior preferred at left-back.

Mikel Arteta opted for an unusual back four, with Benjamin White playing centre-back for the first time this season and Thomas Partey brought into the team at right-back. It followed Roberto De Zerbi's inspired decision to use Moises Caicedo in an inverted full-back role during Brighton & Hove Albion's 3-0 victory over the Gunners last week.

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However, Arteta didn't experience the same success as Taiwo Awoniyi's first-half goal inflicted a second consecutive defeat for Arsenal and handed the Premier League title to Manchester City for a third time in a row.

Tierney to leave Arsenal?

While the Gunners have struggled in William Saliba's absence, the side improved vastly when Kiwior replaced Rob Holding alongside Gabriel Magalhaes at the heart of their backline.

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With Kiwior, Partey, and arguably even White all placed out of position in order for Tierney to be removed from the starting XI, the former Celtic man is now on the brink of leaving the club as he clearly doesn't feature in Arteta's long-term plans at the Emirates Stadium.

Tierney is wanted by both Manchester City and Newcastle as Premier League clubs circle in anticipation of his imminent Arsenal exit.

FootballTransfers exclusively reported interest from Man City in April, while we also brought news of a possible swap deal between Tierney and Joao Cancelo last week.

Newcastle do remain an option for Tierney, however, with a starting berth seemingly more likely at St James' Park than at the Etihad Stadium.

The full-back has started just six Premier League games this season following the summer arrival of Zinchenko, and Arsenal have reportedly lined up Real Madrid's Ferland Mendy, as well as Cancelo, as a possible replacement for the Scot.

According to the Mirror, Real Madrid have told Mendy that he is free to leave the club this summer after being displaced by Eduardo Camavinga in the starting XI. Nacho Fernandez and David Alaba have both also filled in at left-back in place of Mendy, while Fran Garcia has been heavily linked with a move to Los Blancos this summer.