Jurrien Timber has reportedly set his mind on if he thinks he’ll make Arsenal’s squad or not for Saturday’s Premier League clash against AFC Bournemouth.
The Dutch international has now fully recovered from his season-long ACL injury that has seen Timber miss the majority of the campaign, with the defender playing in Arsenal U-21s last two Premier League 2 fixtures.
Scoring a sensational goal against Blackburn Rovers that went viral, Timber played 45 minutes at Ewood Park before playing over 70 minutes against Liverpool on the weekend, with the defender looking good in both matches.
And the defender now has set an expectation for if he will play for Arsenal on Saturday.
Timber aiming to be named in Arsenal’s squad to face Bournemouth
According to the Evening Standard, Timber is set on making Arsenal’s matchday squad to face Bournemouth on Saturday, a game that the Gunners simply have to win to keep pace in the Premier League title race.
Whilst it is unlikely that Timber will feature against the Cherries, the defender returning to the squad for a matchday is nothing short of huge for Arsenal given how long the former Ajax star has been out injured for.
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Indeed, Timber being fit ahead of pre-season will be key for Mikel Arteta in getting his preparation sorted for the 2024/25 campaign, one that could see the Dutch international reclaim his spot in Arsenal’s starting XI in the left-back position.
And although Timber is likely to return as a different player entirely, there are many aspects to the youngster’s game that would not have been lost from this injury, traits that Arteta will be keen to work on.
Gunners would be wise to rest Timber for the remainder of the season
Returning from an ACL injury is arguably one of the hardest challenges any player can experience in football, with the changes to their game in terms of speed and agility apparent for all to see.
And for Arsenal, it would be wise to rest Timber for the remainder of the season given how few games there are left to play and how important the young defender will be in the new campaign for Arteta.
Whilst it is encouraging that Timber wants to be back playing Premier League football, the Dutch international might be better off sitting out the remainder of the season so that he is fully fit and ready for pre-season.