Kieran Tierney's potential inclusion at Elland Road tomorrow afternoon will pose a large question over Mikel Arteta's plans for the full-back this season.
Starting just three Premier League games this season, the 25-year-old will be bidding to warrant an inclusion despite Takehiro Tomiyasu starting in the side's recent victory over Liverpool. The former Celtic man did complete a full 90 minutes in the UEFA Europa League in midweek, however.
Adapting to life in the Premier League hasn't been easy for the Scotland international, with Tomiyasu's arrival also posing the question as to who Arteta seemingly prefers in the left-back position. Injuries aside, Tierney has performed valiantly with one former Premier League forward insisting he feels the defender may be starting to feel restless about his lack of game time.
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"Tierney must be frustrated at the moment. Zinchenko is not fit, Tomiyasu comes in,'' Clinton Morrison said on Sky Sports. "I think Tierney is an outstanding defender, but if you want to win trophies, you need competition for places."
Whilst his statement does ultimately ring true, it seems squad depth is something manager Mikel Arteta is trying to balance with success top of the list this season. Oleksandr Zinchenko's addition will also not help matters, given the former Man City man's pedigree in winning trophies at the Etihad Stadium.
Arteta insisted that Tomiyasu's inclusion against Liverpool was a tactical decision to combat Liverpool's style, previously admitting that the defender's ability to play in multiple positions across the backline allows him a number of options to get more minutes.
"Tomi has been playing left centre-back for his national team Japan. When you look at the games, he can play as a left back too, because you cannot tell me if he’s a left or right-footed player," said Arteta.
"So we have the options there, and we have to utilise them in the best possible way. Especially with the number of minutes we are going to have in the next few weeks, and it’s great that players are comfortable doing more than one position."
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