
Arsenal
Premier League • England
Game over for faultless Arsenal star as summer transfer plan confirmed; two more big names could leave

Kieran Tierney is among three big-name Arsenal stars who could leave at season's end
A second source has echoed TEAMtalk’s exclusive regarding the summer sale of Kieran Tierney, though the left-back could be one of just three major names to depart.
Tierney, 26, cost £25m when plucked from Scottish giant Celtic back in 2019. The left-back rarely put a foot wrong in an Arsenal shirt, though frequent injury issues plagued his career in north London.
Mikel Arteta and Edu ultimately decided to sign other players in Tierney’s position. Oleksandr Zinchenko arrived from Manchester City, while Jurrien Timber -signed from Ajax – can play in either full-back position. Furthermore, centre-back Jakub Kiwior has been called upon by Arteta for the left-back role at times this season.
With options aplenty for the Gunners boss, the decision to loan Tierney out was made ahead of the current campaign.
Tierney left for Spain when joining Real Sociedad for the full season. Tierney has shone for La Real, though a pair of hamstring injuries have limited the Scot to just 13 LaLiga appearances.
Nonetheless, TEAMtalk exclusively learned on March 5 that Real Sociedad would love nothing more than to re-sign Tierney on loan once again for next season.
However, we also learned Real Sociedad may be denied that chance amid an Arsenal decision on Tierney’s future.
The Gunners have transfer-listed Tierney who upon returning in the summer, will be third-choice at best in his favoured left-back position.
As such, Arsenal hope to secure a permanent sale and have set their sights on recouping the full £25m they paid Celtic five years ago.
Now, a second source in the form of Give Me Sport has backed up our claims regarding Tierney.
Tierney exit plan confirmed; possible next clubs named
They state Arsenal ‘will sell’ the full-back and the minimum the Gunners will accept is £20m. Ideally, that £20m would also come with add-ons attached to potentially bring the final fee to £25m and thus break even on the player.
TEAMtalk learned of Aston Villa’s interest in Tierney, while a return to former club Celtic is also possible.
The latter move would obviously require a compromise on the price tag and the player’s wages too.
GMS mirror our reporting regarding Celtic, stating a return to Celtic ‘does make sense’ but the terms of a deal will ‘probably have to become more realistic.’
FEATURE: Five realistic transfers Arsenal can make to topple Man City, Liverpool and become kings of England
Ramsdale and Smith Rowe to leave too?
GMS also name two others who could join Tierney in departing the Emirates this summer – Aaron Ramsdale and Emile Smith Rowe.
Ramsdale is firmly behind David Raya in the pecking order at present. Raya is at the club via a loan agreement with Brentford, though is fully expected to join Arsenal outright through a £27m option to buy.
Smith Rowe, meanwhile, has seen his importance to Arteta crumble in recent years amid repeated injury setbacks.
Martin Odegaard is now the creator-in-chief, while the surging Kai Havertz can also provide creativity in a variety of positions. Fabio Vieira is also on the books, as is Leandro Trossard.
Reporter Ben Jacobs told GMS Arsenal could begrudgingly accept Ramsdale’s exit if he pushes to leave. The 25-year-old wants to be a regular starter and as this season has shown, he won’t have that opportunity at Arsenal moving forwards.
Smith Rowe, meanwhile, might be harder to shift if Arsenal stick to their sky high valuation of the player.
TEAMtalk learned all the way back in October that Arsenal view Smith Rowe as comparable to Mason Mount.
The ex-Chelsea midfielder joined Man Utd for £55m in the summer and Arsenal would want a similar type of fee if selling Smith Rowe.
DON’T MISS: Ian Wright hails new ‘big-game player’ for Arsenal as price tag concerns ripped up