AUNTIE SCOTTISH
Tierney hits back at Beeb pundits who urged him to quit Hoops for England
KIERAN TIERNEY admits it was flattering to be on Football Focus but doesn’t share the same vision as the pundits.
The BBC flagship show did a feature on Celtic’s top talent last weekend and while Mark Lawrenson and Paul Ince were singing the youngster’s praises it came with the usual caveats.
Tierney is a star on the rise but won’t reach his potential until he shakes off the shackles of Scottish football was the Auntie double act’s verdict.
Everyone knows they mean England – the self-appointed greatest league in the world. Aye, okay guys, we know. It’s nothing the Scotland sensation hasn’t heard before but he insists he is only focused on playing for Celtic.
The 20-year-old, who didn’t even watch the show until his pals sent him a link, said: “They’re big names in the game and have their opinions.
“But I’m sure they know how big Celtic are – everyone does because we’re one of the biggest clubs in the world.
“I certainly know how big a challenge it is to play here. When you’re expected to win every week it’s difficult.
“I don’t think about it too much because I’m only playing to impress my manager, my family and the fans.
“I’ve heard a few people talking about what was said and you take it on board. If people criticise you then you just try to get better as a player. For me it’s about doing all I can to make sure I’m playing at the weekend.”
The defender loves playing every week for the team he loves but admits he has an eye on the winter break after a brutal first half of the season.
Tierney said: “It will be good to get some time off in January because the team needs it. Since the gaffer came in we’ve been at it solid for 18 months – it has been non-stop. Some of the guys got two weeks in the summer but with the internationals I got eight days.
“I honestly think it makes what we achieved all the more remarkable because it has been so full on since the gaffer came in.”
Not that Tierney ever wants to sit out. He was hooked halfway through last weekend’s 4-0 defeat to Hearts as Celtic’s unbeaten domestic run ended.
But he responded in typical fashion – back to his best and on the scoresheet as the Hoops followed up three days later with a 2-0 win over Partick Thistle.
He said: “I wouldn’t say Hearts was a game too far.
“There was no difference between that and the games two or three weeks ago because it has been intense all the way.
“I just think it was an off day. We’re all fit, we’ve been training and rotating the squad.
“But it’ll take some doing for anyone to get past that record – 69 games is unbelievable in terms of consistency levels.
“There have been lots of highpressure games – cup semifinals and finals plus away games where people were thinking, ‘This is it, this is when it ends’. You need to overcome all that and to do it for over a season is astonishing.”
Tierney reckons the run will never be beaten – but Brendan Rodgers’s side will have a bash.
He said: “We’re the ones who hold the record so if people are going to say that then yes.
“But it probably is a once-ina-lifetime record. Everybody knows that. The fans know that. You saw the fans on Wednesday night – the reception the team got in the 69th minute was brilliant. The fans deserve a lot of credit as well because every single game we played – no matter where it was, home or away, a good performance or not – they were always supporting us, always clapping us, always singing. It couldn’t have been done without the fans as well.
“It has been crazy again for the team. It has been an iconic year. We’ve achieved so much together as a team and we’re looking to kick on again.
“You don’t have enough time to sit down and reflect on all that has happened. You can only really look back and reflect when you retire.
“I suppose I will one day look back and realise what we’ve achieved together – but for now it’s about focusing on the next challenge. For us that’s Aberdeen.”
Celtic’s best domestic display of the season came at Pittodrie in October and Tierney – who scored a cracker in the 3-0 win – believes it will take more of the same at Parkhead today after the Dons’ 4-1 win over Hibs.
He said: “That was great. It felt as if everything just went for us. It was just one of those days when our passing and pressing was unbelievable.
“It wasn’t as if Aberdeen were doing anything wrong – we just did really well that night. But we know it will be a tough game.
“We are going to need to play well to beat Aberdeen. They are a good team and hard to break down. With the result they had against Hibs they will be coming into the game full of confidence.”
Tierney’s goal in Wednesday’s win made it three this term – and he’s hungry for more.
He said: “That is my record – I got one in my first season, two in my second and I am on three just now. It is something the gaffer has always wanted me to add to my game – a few more goals.
“I have been working on that in training – my finishing. I am still miles off it but I am trying.
“I have had two goal of the month awards from my two goals this season so I’ll take that. I don’t think I have the instincts you need to score tap-ins.”
We’re one of the biggest clubs in the world. I know how big a challenge it is to play here KIERAN TIERNEY