Kieran Tierney is set to feature against Manchester United on Monday after being left out of the Arsenal u23 squad this weekend.

TELFORD, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 20: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal in the changing room after the Premier League 2 match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal at New Bucks Head Stadium on September 20, 2019 in Telford, England. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
TELFORD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 20: Kieran Tierney of Arsenal in the changing room after the Premier League 2 match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Arsenal at New Bucks Head Stadium on September 20, 2019, in Telford, England. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

Arsenal have been very cautious with Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney through the opening weeks of the season, but it seems that approach is paying off for the duo.

Bellerin played 90 minutes for the u23s against Liverpool on Saturday, providing an assist for Folarin Balogun, so it seems he’ll be ready for first-team starts in next to no time. He certainly won’t feature on Monday though.

In Tierney’s case, after playing 77 minutes against Nottingham Forest, he was excluded from that u23 match over the weekend. Metro report that’s because he’s “in line to start” against Manchester United, though there’s no confirmation of that yet.

It certainly seems likely the left-back will feature in the squad travelling to Old Trafford, at least.

Whether he makes it onto the pitch is another matter, particularly for a game as big as this. Tierney hasn’t played any competitive minutes alongside most of the team set to start against United, considering the heavy rotation for Forest.

Even if Arsenal continue to take things slowly with the full-back pair, the good news is they should certainly be back in contention after the October international break. Long term, it’s obviously better to have them available for the rest of the season than one game at Old Trafford.