Newcastle United are looking at other options at left-back if their number one target in Kieran Tierney isn’t allowed to leave Arsenal this summer.
Arsenal have set their asking price at more than £30million for Kieran Tierney, and although Newcastle United are currently leading the race to sign him, Mikel Arteta is reluctant to let the player leave ahead of next season. It’s also currently unclear whether Newcastle would be willing to pay what Arsenal want, therefore the Magpies have started looking at other options.
Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella is on Eddie Howe’s list of summer transfer targets as they plan for Champions League football at St James’s Park next season, according to The Mirror.
Marc Cucurella moved to Chelsea at the beginning of last season in a deal worth £60million and I think it’s fair to say he hasn’t been able to replicate his great form that got him the move from Brighton, amid in a very difficult Chelsea set-up. It was Newcastle’s current sporting director Dan Ashworth who brought the full-back to Brighton from Getafe when he was the club’s technical director.
Mauricio Pochettino is prepared to let the 24-year-old leave for a cut-price as he looks to trim down a bloated squad with Newcastle showing interest. It’s believed Chelsea would be willing to accept £30million for the Spanish international which is a little less than what Arsenal are looking for if Kieran Tierney is to leave the club this summer.
Newcastle United have begun looking at other options at left-back if Kieran Tierney isn’t allowed to leave Arsenal. [Image Credit: Getty Images]
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Newcastle manager, Eddie Howe is a big fan of the Scotsman with him previously trying to sign Tierney from Celtic when he was the manager at Bournemouth a few years ago. Kieran Tierney remains Newcastle’s number one target to strengthen the left-back area but Mikel Arteta is reluctant to let the player leave ahead of a return to the Champions League next season.
Kieran Tierney moving to Newcastle would mean he’s closer to his family in Scotland and he would get to play Champions League football next season which is something he’s made clear he wants, so the move on paper makes sense. However Arsenal won’t let the player leave unless their valuation of around £40million is met.
Unai Emery is also interested in reuniting with Kieran Tierney at Aston Villa. The former Arsenal manager was the one who brought Kieran Tierney to the Emirates Stadium from Celtic back in 2019. However Newcastle United are currently the team leading the race, according to reports.
The Scottish left-back has seen his minutes reduce dramatically this season after the signing of Oleksandr Zinchenko at the beginning of the season. The Ukrainian is key to the way Mikel Arteta wants to play and therefore has started the majority of Premier League games this season, which has left Kieran Tierney make most of his league appearances off the bench.
Kieran Tierney played 776′ minutes in the Premier League for Arsenal this season, compared to playing 1919′ minutes during the 2021/22 season. He was also injured for a couple of months last season too, which shows how little game time the Scotsman has had during the 2022/23 campaign.
There were times this season when Zinchenko was out and Tomiyasu would start ahead of Tierney at left-back. Mikel Arteta wants the 25-year-old to stay as he feels he can give him more valuable minutes with Arsenal being back in the Champions League next season, however he understands the players’ desire to leave and won’t stand in his way as long as Arsenal’s valuation is met.
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