Arsenal are vowing to fight all the way to get Kieran Tierney out of quarantine so he can face Manchester City.
The Gunners are building a case that Tierney should not have to isolate for 14 days — including proof that he was sitting 2.8metres from Covid-positive Scotland team-mate Stuart Armstrong at the time in question.
Arsenal are adamant that Tierney should be spared a fortnight of isolation and were on Thursday continuing talks with the Scottish government and Scottish Football Association in search of a resolution.
Tierney was deemed a close contact of Armstrong after the pair, and midfielder Ryan Christie, played computer games in a hotel room while on international duty.
Lothian health board (LHB) officials were called in, after Armstrong’s positive test on Wednesday, to identify who else may have been impacted.
Tierney released a statement confirming he had stuck to all the guidelines and remained socially distant from his team-mates throughout his time in the Scotland camp. That was backed up when an LHB official entered the relevant room to assess where he and Armstrong had been sitting and measured that there was almost 3m between the pair, well above the minimum social distancing limit of 2m.
Also causing frustration is that Tierney — who Arsenal are hoping to bring back to London — has now tested negative three times while away with his national side and proved he has antibodies to the virus.
Meanwhile, the gamers in Scotland’s squad use their own consoles and accessories, further reducing the possibility of any spread as they do not need to touch any of their team-mates’ property.
Armstrong will be able to play in Southampton’s next game at Chelsea as he has to isolate for just 10 days.
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