Kieran Tierney and the Real Madrid transfer factor Arsenal will fear as Gunners warned they can't let him go

With a blockbuster summer transfer window looming just a few months away, it appears Kieran Tierney could be one of this year's main characters.

The Arsenal and Scotland star has been touted as a target for none other than Real Madrid in recent weeks, with Florentino Perez said to be determined to broker a deal.

Tierney has become an integral part of Mikel Arteta's rebuild at the Emirates, one that now appears to be gathering serious pace.

The Gunners have won six of their last seven to surge into the Premier League top four, putting them in pole position to claim the final Champions League place for next season.

It's perhaps no coincidence that just when Madrid's interest has bubbled to the surface, so too has talk of Tierney becoming Arsenal captain.

Club legend Ray Parlour has been among big names to put the 24-year-old forward for the role.

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And that call has now been echoed by Paul Dickov, a fellow Scot who played for the London club between 1990 and 1996.

“Kieran Tierney's just a wonderful player, not just as a defender,” said Dickov at an OLBG media event. “But it's very rare you see a defender who likes to defend as well. The modern defender prefers to play out and higher up the pitch, but