Latest news with #LaGranMuralla
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Kieran Tierney issues first Celtic words as homecoming hero reveals his burning Hoops ambition
Kieran Tierney insists he feels back at home after completing his emotional return to Celtic. The defender, 28, has been officially paraded by the Hoops after penning a five-year deal from Arsenal. Celts banked a then-club record fee of £25million when KT left his boyhood club for the Gunners in 2019. Advertisement READ MORE: Major Mathias Kvistgaarden to Celtic transfer update as Marco Silva claim backs up burning Osmand belief READ MORE: Out of contract Celtic XI as La Gran Muralla and 4 Treble heroes search for new clubs Six years later, the four-in-a-row champions have pulled off a major coup by landing the out-of-contract star on a free transfer. Homegrown Tierney - who won three Trebles in his first stint at Celtic - is determined to win even more silverware. Speaking for the first time, Tierney said: 'Everybody's known for a few months and just to be here with the Celtic strip on again just feels amazing. Advertisement 'I spoke with the manager, and obviously I had worked with him before and I've always kept in touch with him. "He's one of the best so I'm so lucky and grateful that he's given me the chance to come back again. 'When you move away from home, you grow up, you learn different things. I was in Spain for a year, learning a different language and playing in a different league, so I'm definitely a different person. Kieran Tierney has been reunited with Brendan Rodgers -Credit:Getty Images 'Player-wise, it's the same as I always say – I'll try and work my hardest, I'll do my best for the club and that's all I can do. 'My ambition is just for Celtic to be as successful as possible, retain our place at the top and continue to win trophies and do well for Celtic.' Advertisement The Scotland left-back will meet his new teammates when the Double-winners return to Lennoxtown for pre-season training. And boss Brendan Rodgers is confident Celts have added a player of the highest calibre to their squad. He said: 'We are delighted to welcome Kieran back to Celtic. He is such a talented, high-quality player and he will be a massive addition to our squad. 'Kieran has always had Celtic in his blood and he is excited to be coming back to the place he loves. 'He is someone who has given so much to Celtic already and I know he is so motivated and hungry to help the club bring more and more success to our fans. Advertisement 'We are so pleased to bring such an elite player back to the club and I look forward to working with him again and the rest of the squad, as we face the many challenges ahead at home and in Europe.' Tune in to Hotline Live every Sunday to Thursday and have your say on the biggest issues in Scottish football and listen to Record Sport's newest podcast, Game On, every Friday for your sporting fix, all in bitesize chunks.
Scottish Sun
31-05-2025
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Celtic hero, 37, who won back-to-back POTY awards left unemployed after being released by club
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) HE won seven trophies in Glasgow and played a crucial role in the famous win over Barcelona in 2012. But that heroic performance for Celtic at Parkhead was eclipsed this season as he topped off his latest stint in football with his first European winner's medal. Sign up for the Celtic newsletter Sign up 3 He enjoyed many European nights at Celtic Park Credit: Kenny Ramsay - The Sun Glasgow 3 Fraser Forster is now without a club Credit: Kenny Ramsay - The Sun Glasgow 3 He leaves Tottenham a Europa League winner Credit: Getty Fraser Forster is now unemployed at the age of 37 after being released by Tottenham Hotspur - less than two weeks after lifting the Europa League trophy in Spain. The former Celtic goalkeeper, who enjoyed two spells in Scotland, now has a decision to make on his future in the game after ending his time with Ange Postecoglou's side. Forster made 34 appearances for Spurs in three years after being brought to the club in 2022 as backup keeper. He played 20 times in his first campaign with the club but was handed just one appearance in his second - and his first under Postecoglou. But this season he was brought back into the fold once again after injuries to Guglielmo Vicario left him out of the side. Forster was between the sticks in four Europa League ties and nine domestic fixtures. He even faced his old rivals Rangers at Ibrox in December but failed to keep a clean sheet after Hamza Igamane hit the back of the net to make it 1-0. But Forster had plenty of clean sheets against the Light Blues earlier in his career, having kept them out as many as seven times for Celtic. The towering Englishman is considered by many to be the Hoops' greatest goalie in recent decades. His first spell in Scotland was over a period of four years in which he had back-to-back loan stints before joining on a permanent deal from Newcastle for £2m. Fraser Forster reveals the one piece of rare Celtic memorabilia he will never sell He left for Southampton in 2014 for £10m and returned north of the border on another loan in 2019. During that first spell he earned the nickname La Gran Muralla (The Great Wall) thanks to his heroics in the aforementioned European upset over the Catalan giants. The Hoops narrowly lost at the Nou Camp but at Celtic Park he was the star of the show, repelling the Spanish armada wave after wave of attack. His exploits at one end allowed for Victor Wanyama and Tony Watt to write themselves into the history books at the other end, as Celtic recorded a famous 2-1 win over Lionel Messi and Co. The Argentine superstar would later go on to say of Forster that night: "There was one game in Scotland when he was not human, it was the best goalkeeping performance I have seen." And after the game, Forster made sure it was he who ended up with Messi's shirt. Forster won four league titles, two Scottish Cups and one League Cup during his time in Scotland. He was voted Celtic's Players' Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons - in 2013 and 2014. Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
