Wilfried Nancy identifies Kieran Tierney as his Celtic standard-bearer

Celtic boss Wilfried Nancy has launched an impassioned defence of Kieran Tierney — insisting he will set the standard for any new signings in January.

Tierney’s form and fitness have come under intense scrutiny this season since he returned to Celtic from Arsenal.

The Scotland defender has struggled to complete 90 minutes on a regular basis, but has popped up with some important goals.

He scored late against Aberdeen last week as Celtic finally notched their first win under Nancy at the fifth time of asking.

The new manager has been impressed with what he has seen from Tierney and feels the new system with three at the back could be perfectly suited to the 28-year-old, who has played in a similar role with Scotland.

Nancy has stressed the importance of the leadership qualities provided by Tierney and Callum McGregor on and off the pitch — and insists personality will be a key attribute for any January recruit.

The Celtic defender popped up at the back post to nod his side ahead against the 10-man Dons

Wilfried Nancy tries to get his message across to Tierney during a difficult start to his tenure

‘Personality is key,’ said Nancy, who will take his team to face bottom of the table Livingston today. ‘We have a lot of ability in terms of the way we play.

‘It is important that when you sign players, they need to have personality. This is a big club. To play here is not always easy. It is so, so important to have players who can play here at a club like this.

‘Everybody knows Kieran. I knew him before I came here. He’s an important player for us.

‘There are different kinds of personalities. Kieran is not a vocal leader but shows it on the pitch. Callum also shows on the pitch but he’s a vocal leader too. We have other players like this.

‘When I talk about personalities, it’s not only to be vocal, it’s to have the right attitude when it is difficult.

‘This means when we attack, can we keep showing ourselves for each other, can we still press, or can we defend like crazy in the moment? It’s more about the attitude for me. This is what I am looking for.

‘Kieran has played this system before [with the national team] and obviously I discussed it with him and knew he was able to do it.

Tierney has often struggled to see out 90 minutes since returning to Celtic from Arsenal

‘He has been playing 90 minutes in a few games now. In the past it was 60 minutes because they wanted to help him reach the 90 minutes.

‘We’ve been working together to do that. After that, I hope that you can see more. I’m not surprised by what he has done already but I know he can do more in terms of everything, fitness-wise too.

‘The idea is not to give him 90 minutes all the time, but to make sure he’s fresh at the good moments.’

Celtic have endured a turbulent start to life under new manager Nancy since he took the reins but finally got up and running with a 3-1 victory over ten-man Aberdeen last weekend, ending a run of four straight defeats.

They currently trail league leaders Hearts by six points, albeit they still have a game in hand over their title rivals.

Nancy and his players will be back in action today when they travel to face a Livingston side who are bottom of the league. They will then face vital matches against Motherwell and Rangers over the next week.

The Frenchman insists he will challenge his players to continue to improve as he seeks to string a run of wins together.

Tierney’s high point of a frustrating season was his crucial goal for Scotland against Denmark

‘I think there are a few players who can do better in certain positions but for the moment I am pleased with what I have,’ he said.

‘I want to challenge them more because they have more potential than maybe they think. This is the only way for me, for them to compete with themselves.

‘We won the game a few days ago against Aberdeen but I will be more demanding this week because I believe we can do more.

‘After that it’s all about the direction and communication with players. They accept the challenge. I will not push a player if I see he’s not able to accept the challenge.

‘When you give someone a challenge and they enjoy it, it’s to find the balance.

‘This will be the first time for me playing football at this time of year. It is new to me. Christmas time is normally off [in my previous jobs].

‘But I love it. When I was in Europe or America, I was so happy to wake up and watch games. Now I am going to be part of the games. It is new to me but I really like it.’

This will be Nancy’s first encounter with a Livingston side renowned for their physicality and threat from set-plays, as well as their notoriously difficult plastic pitch.

He continued: ‘I played a few games on a plastic pitch. My staff have already told me about the environment at Livingston, the pitch, the style of play.

Nancy is preparing for his first taste of Livingston’s artificial surface at their home stadium

‘I am going to watch the videos of a few games. We know it will be tough. We will respect the opposition, but we want to focus on ourselves and putting on a good performance.

‘Set pieces are key now in modern football, especially here with the physicality. The idea is to compete. We know they are going to be bigger than us.

‘The idea first of all is to avoid set pieces if we can. Secondly, is to focus on the task and to compete with the big guys, to attack the ball and to be especially good on the second phase.

‘We are ready for that, while knowing it will be tough. We have had a good week and we are ready for the challenge of this match.’