SAYS KIERAN TIERNEY
The good news for mum and dad is that I bought them a house.. the bad news for them is I still live in it, I don’t do the dishes and never bring my washing downstairs
KIERAN tIERNEY looks as comfortable at Champions League level as he does sitting with his feet up in the house with his folks.
The Celtic superstar on the rise feels right at home regardless.
There might be a growing list of clubs looking to tempt him away but the 20-year-old has no intention of leaving Parkhead – or his family house – any time soon.
Hoops fans will be delighted to hear it but Tierney admits all the fuss about his new six-year deal and the attention from elsewhere is strange when it wasn’t so long ago he feared he would have to pack his bags.
It’s incredible to think the lad who didn’t look out of place against Arjen Robben had doubts he would even crack it at Celtic.
Not so long ago Tierney was part of the pro youth set-up but was worried he wasn’t going to be kept on – never mind emerging as one of the hottest talents in the UK.
The scare means he takes nothing for granted after having to fight for every shred of success that has come his way.
Tierney said: “There was a time when I wasn’t getting a game. At 14 or 15 I never got picked for Scotland and a lot of the times when you’re not in the Scotland squad you’re not really playing club football either.
“Times like that were hard. It was getting near the end of the school term and a lot of the players had heard about their contracts.
“Me and a couple of others hadn’t. It was me and (St Johnstone’s) Aaron Comrie – who I will hopefully be playing against on Saturday – and neither of us heard anything till very late on.
“We got a deal in the end but the others got longer terms.
“They got three-year deals at the start and we got one year. At times like that you are looking at other options, whether it is to go away working or try to find another team.
“So youth football wasn’t all plain sailing. It made me work harder than ever. I was more hungry to get a new deal with Celtic, to get on the same contract as my team-mates and get game time.
“A few times both of us had to step down and play with the younger ones just to get a game. We really worked hard and broke our way in eventually.”
Tierney never looked back. He has racked up plaudits and plenty of pounds along the way but never lost his impressive down-to-earth nature. There are no f lashy motors, fancy watches or diamond stud earrings with this kid from Motherwell – and there won’t be despite the lucrative new deal.
Tierney’s a home Bhoy but at least he doesn’t need to do the dishes.
The full-back said: “As soon as I got my deal the last time, I bought a house for my mum and dad. That was the one thing I always wanted to do.
“I still live at home with them – I’ll be there for a few years yet. I can’t do anything for myself !
“It keeps me grounded in some ways, living under the same roof as your mum and dad. They are still in charge. I don’t plan on moving out for a good few years yet.
“My mum still says I leave my dishes in the room or don’t bring my washing down. It has always been like that. Nothing has changed with my family.
“It’s all good. I don’t need to do the dishes – I just need to bring them down the stairs. I try not to get big-headed so hopefully they don’t have to ever bring me back down to earth.
“I’ve got them, as well as a lot of good friends, who would tell me if I ever got out of line or too big time.
“Most of my friends are apprentices and still living at home.
“It’s quite hard for young people these days to get a house or a flat so young. It’s a lot of money.”
That line sums him up. Tierney might be flush but he knows how the real world works. He’s being hailed from all quarters but still doesn’t see himself as big time.
He emerged with credit after refusing to buckle against PSG’s £160million man Kylian Mbappe and Bayern Munich legend Robben. All that mattered to Tierney though was the end result so rather than soak up the praise he preferred to focus on how he can keep improving to make sure he’s on the winning side next time.
He said: “We didn’t win so you can’t be too happy.
“But I gave it my all which is all you can ask. I tried to make it hard for Robben, get close to him.
“You learn a lot in these games. Even just their fitness – it is hard to keep up to their tempo because they are playing at that tempo every week.
“For years they have been playing like that and for me being so young to play against the top players will benefit me.
“You can’t give them too much respect where you start sitting off them and not playing your game.
“You have to respect everything he has done but you have to play your game and try not to let it faze you at all.”
There may come a time when Tierney does fly the nest but it will only be in exchange for a cheque that will feature a heck of a lot of zeros.
Before that day, Tierney has the small matter of a 100-year-old record to beat as Celts look to set a new UK milestone of 63 domestic games unbeaten.
The Hoops matched Willie Maley’s Parkhead side’s feat from 1917 against Kilmarnock last week and Tierney is looking to play a key role after being a sub the last time the side lost – also at McDiarmid Park – in April 2016.
He said: “We couldn’t have imagined this. We didn’t know too much about the record a couple of games ago but it is being spoken about now.
“Even if I look back on last season, that was creating history. I don’t think that will ever be done again. It will be more recognised down the years, maybe 10 or 15 years later.”
I don’t plan on moving out for a good few years .. it keeps me grounded KIERAN TIERNEY