Mikel Arteta's decision to sign Jurrien Timber is an extremely smart one as he is sure to add necessary depth and competition to Arsenal's defence. football.london understands that Arsenal could pay up to £38.5m for the Netherlands international with £34.2m paid as the up front fee with a further £4.3million available in add-ons.
Last season, the 23-year-old was deployed at right-back for Ajax, but he would often invert to give the Dutch giants an extra option in midfield in the same way OIeksandr Zinchenko would do so from the left at Emirates Stadium.
Developed from his days at Manchester City, Arteta is a huge fan of his full-backs being tactically versatile and therefore capable of pushing into midfield. Adding options in defence was always seen as a priority for the Gunners and the signing of Timber will give Arteta more flexibility to change formation.
