About his expectations of Jurrien Timber, Mikel Arteta recently told Sky Sports, “We’re all desperate to have him on that pitch,”
“His leadership, his skills, his composure, the way he competes, his intelligence – I think he’s going to bring so much to the team. We’re gonna love him.”
Although we were eagerly anticipating Timber’s 2024–25 season in the hopes that he would demonstrate his full potential, that might not be the case. The upcoming season could focus on the Dutch star’s gradual integration into the team.
After signing last summer, the dynamic defender demonstrated his class by excelling during pre-season and helping Arsenal win the 2023 Community Shield. He was eager to prove his worth in the 2023–24 Premier League campaign, but an ACL injury took him off 52 minutes into his PL debut on Match Day 1 of last season, causing him to miss 45 games (in all competitions) until he made a cameo appearance on the final day of the season when Arsenal defeated Everton 2-1.
After a successful summer break and an impressive pre-season, expectations were high for him this season. However, despite playing in Arsenal’s first two pre-season friendly matches against Bournemouth and Manchester United, he was not available for friendlies against Liverpool, Bayer Leverkusen, and Lyon. Many Gooners were perplexed as to why he wasn’t available in those games; it turned out that he had a load-bearing injury.
Given the nature of his injury and the length of his absence from match action, the setback was understandable.The Gooners, on the other hand, were concerned about when he would return and whether he would be in contention to face the Wolves on Match Day 1. Well, the good news is that he is back in full first-team training.
Even so, Arsenal should be especially cautious with him this season; they ought to manage his workload and can comfortably do so, as the arrival of Riccardo Calafiori and the resurgence of Oleksandr Zinchenko have given the team the much-needed defensive depth not to overrely on him and properly manage his comeback.So, for all of us Gooners anticipating a big Jurrien Timber season, we may need to temper our expectations.
It may take some time before he is as readily available as we anticipate.
Darren N
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Slowly, but surely Timber will become an important player for us. How and where he will fit in will be interesting to see. One thing is for sure, we cannot expect Ben White to play as many games as last season.
He played a role in the last couple of games last season.
I am sure he will be a fantastic player for us…
He needs a good run of games when fully fit not only so that Arteta can be confident in him but also for the player’s own psychological benefit having missed last season, which unfortunately was also his first at Arsenal. Fingers crossed that’s what he gets.