‘He needs to know’: Tottenham’s Matt Doherty sends warning to £25m Arsenal player

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Matt Doherty has warned Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney that ‘he needs to know what I bring to the table’, as the Tottenham Hotspur defender prepares to take on the Scotland star for the Republic of Ireland.

Tottenham’s versatile wing-back shared that he has come up against Tierney in the north London derby before and ‘it was a pretty tough game’ against the Arsenal star, as he told his press conference.

One week before meeting in the north London derby, the Republic of Ireland will travel to Hampden where they will take on Steve Clarke’s thriving Scotland in the UEFA Nations League.

Whilst Doherty hasn’t been earning the regular minutes under Antonio Conte this season, he will be expected to start the weekend encounter.

And Tierney, in the absence of Liverpool star Andy Robertson, started Scotland’s comfortable 3-0 win over Ukraine in the UEFA Nations League on Wednesday.

Nonetheless, ahead of the Republic of Ireland’s visit to Scotland on Saturday evening, Doherty was asked about facing off against Arsenal’s £25 million star (Sky Sports) and he issued the following response.

“I played against him at the Emirates, a couple of years back, for Tottenham and it was a pretty tough game,” said Doherty.

“They played well and he played well that game, so I know what his strengths are and I know what he brings to the table.

“But then again, if I play, he needs to know what I bring to the table as well. I think it will be a pretty good battle if we start.”

NLD IS AROUND THE CORNER

Well, the upcoming north London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham couldn’t get any bigger given the impact the possible end result could have.

Spurs are yet to be beaten in the Premier League this season, whilst Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal are sitting at the top of the Premier League tree.

Either way, a win for both sides, either keeps Arsenal top or pushes Spurs to the top of the league, especially given that it will be the first fixture played upon domestic football’s return from the international break.

More than likely, Doherty won’t start given that the likes of Emerson Royal, Ivan Perisic and Ryan Sessegnon are ahead of him, but Tierney will be hoping he gets ahead of the currently injured Oleksandr Zinczenko at left-back.