Timber is finally back
After what has seemed like forever, Jurrien Timber was granted 20 minutes of football last night against Everton after being out with a serious ACL injury for almost the whole season. Timber has been working on getting back to full fitness for months, and after playing for the U21s and scoring a incredible goal, every Arsenal fan was wondering when, and if, we would get to see him play before the season ends and last night we got a little taste of what he’s all about.
Coming on for White in the 70th minute, Timber received a standing ovation after being out of first team football for the whole season. Joining the club from Ajax last summer, Arteta and the fans had high hopes for the future of Timber at Arsenal but after a very good pre-season, he picked up an ACL injury against Nottingham Forest that was set to see him miss the whole campaign.
Having a new player come in is always special, and it always takes a player, especially one from a different league, to settle in and get going. With the injury to Timber it felt like a big smack in the face and was bound to be a struggle for the defender to get back to full fitness. Being in a new country and city and being surrounded by things you don’t know is one thing, but to then pick up an injury like an ACL so early into being somewhere new, would have been devastating for the young defender, but the squad and the manager seemed like they rallied around him and tried to help him with his recovery the best they could.
As soon as I saw he was named in the match day squad, I knew he’s get some minutes, and for Arteta to bring him on, for the last 20 minutes, in a game that at that point felt like it was going to end with both teams sharing the points, is a big deal. He clearly trusts him and coming into next season, I expect Timber to be playing in almost every match.
For the 20 minutes he was on the pitch, he looked electric and didn’t seem to put a foot wrong, having 30 touches, and managed to walk away with 20/22 (91%) accurate passes. Looking calm and collected whenever he was on the ball and gave us a little bit more security and freedom at the back. Being such a versatile defender, he’s going to be massive for Arteta and this Arsenal squad and as long as we can slowly make sure he’s 100% and watch his fitness, it’s going to be like a whole new signing next season.
