AT 20, you would think Kieran Tierney is a fair bit off being able to feel nostalgic about his career.
Having said that, the young defender has already consigned the thought of Sunday’s 4-0 win over Rangers to his own personal history books as he targets writing a new chapter in Celtic’s.
Helping guide the SPFL Premiership leaders and Betfred Cup champions through to the Scottish Cup final brings a sense of expectation and a lot of pressure to the shoulders of Tierney and those in the Celtic dressing room as the relentless search for silverware continues.
Under Brendan Rodgers, the Parkhead club have been ruthless over the past two seasons, with Sunday’s victory the latest highlight for his young left-back. But while Tierney Snr may sit replaying the footage of his son’s most recent scalp, the man himself is focused on finishing the job of completing a double treble for his club.
He said: “My dad goes over the games but I don’t. We will analyse it in training and John Kennedy will go over the good and bad bits with me.
“It’s one for the memories, defo. Looking back in years to come it will be a great memory for me but we still have big games to look forward to and can’t dwell on this too long.
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“We still have to win the league - rest up and hopefully beat Hibs.
“A double treble has never been done for a reason - it’s very hard. We have to work in training to get there. We’ve now put ourselves in a great position and it’s up to us to be 100% and do the business now.”
He added: “All that matters is winning these games. You saw the last time out at Ibrox, down to ten men and winning was a great feeling.
“To win by four in a high pressure semi-final that everyone is talking about it just shows you hard we are working.
“After the games there’s no better feeling. It’s surreal when you walk around the stadium at full-time and see the smiles on everyone’s faces. It doesn’t get better than that.”
It is perhaps indicative of the mindset Rodgers has instilled in his players that there is an inability to dwell too much on one success before attention inevitably turns to the pursuit of another.
As half of Hampden rejoiced on Sunday afternoon as Olivier Ntcham made it four, the other half was quickly emptying as the Rangers half of the ground had seen enough. Itwas an exodus Tierney noticed, but not something he had time to take any satisfaction over.
“You noticed it near the end and obviously 4-0 down is not great for them, but I was looking at Celtic fans more than Rangers ones. I noticed they were happy and singing and that’s good,” he said.
“I don’t think you can enjoy it for too long. One mistake and they are in. Craigy pulled off saves in this match and while it may look comfortable in possession you can never allow yourself to switch off.
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“It was brilliant - from first minute to last we were the better team and we showed we wanted it. It was a great result.
“The games are tough but what we do in training and what we showed on the pitch gives us the best possible chance to get a victory.
“We were clinical - when we got chances we took them.”
Turning his attention to the final with Motherwell on May 19, Tierney is perhaps looking for a less painful experience that last year’s showpiece. The Celtic defender made it back just in time for the trophy presentation after being sent to hospital due to being smacked in the jaw by Jayden Stockley.
“It wasn’t great for me, but then Tom [Rogic] came on for me and scored so basically he owes me one for that,” he laughed.
“I missed the last league game [against Motherwell] through injury, but I watched it and they are a hard team.
“The play to their strengths and I’m sure they will do the same and make it very tough for us in the final.”
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