Everton on alert as Spurs enter race for Tierney

EVERTON will this week try to ascertain Celtic’s asking price for Kieran Tierney — with Tottenham now joining the queue of potential suitors for the player. Back on Merseyside today for the start of pre-season training, Toffees boss Marco Silva has identified the signing of the full-back (left) as a priority, with £25million of his budget earmarked for the deal. While both Wolves and Bournemouth have the means to match that figure, they are

unlikely to appeal to the player as he plots his future. With Champions League football next season, Tottenham, however, are a different proposition. Boss Mauricio Pochettino sees Tierney as the kind of asset who could turn his side into genuine title contenders. Although he would need to sell Danny Rose before making his move. Last week, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers said he would not try to talk Tierney out of a move to England, given his ‘moral’ obligation is to ensure he progresses at the fastest rate possible. A die-hard Celtic fan who recently signed a six-year deal with his boyhood heroes, Tierney, 21, has spoken of his desire to become one of Celtic’s great one-club men. But with the chance to at least double his wages in England and Celtic unable to resist astronomical offers for a player who came through their academy, he may yet move on. Kristoffer Ajer fully understands the growing interest in his team-mate but hopes he can stay for the time being. ‘I’m not surprised,’ he said. ‘KT has been fantastic and has helped me a lot coming into the group. He’s a fantastic full-back and it’s great to play with him. ‘He knows a lot about the club and its history. It’s just nice to see such a big Celtic fan playing for the team. ‘When you play for Celtic, do well and have won the Treble twice, there is always going to be interest in you. But when you play for such a massive club, it’s a fantastic place to be. ‘He’s been tremendous for us and has proved himself over a number of seasons. So, yes, of course we are desperate for this group to stay together. ‘KT is an important player in the squad and we want him to stay.’ Celtic, who lost 1-0 to Czech side Bohemians on Saturday, will wrap-up their pre-season training camp in Austria with a closed-door game against Blau-Weiss Linz tomorrow morning before facing Sparta Prague later in the day. Moussa Dembele has not played on tour to date but is set for his first run out in the latter game. ‘Moussa came back a bit later than everyone else, but he looks really fit,’ said Rodgers.