There are fears that Arsenal summer signing Jurrien Timber is set for a significant spell on the sidelines after being forced off in Saturday’s victory over Nottingham Forest.
Timber joined the Gunners from Ajax in a £38.5million deal this summer and impressed in pre-season, but saw his Premier League debut curtailed by a knee injury just after half-time during his side’s 2-1 win at the Emirates Stadium.
The Dutchman was initially hurt making a challenge shortly before the interval but after receiving treatment was given the nod to return after the break, only to go down again and this time be replaced by Takehiro Tomiyasu.
Timber is continuing to be assessed as the club wait to discover the extent of the problem but a lengthy absence would be a significant blow to Mikel Arteta’s plans even at this early stage of the 22-year-old’s Gunners career.
“Further to his substitution during our match against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, Jurrien Timber has received extensive assessments and scans which have confirmed he has sustained an injury to his right knee,” Arsenal said in a statement on Monday night.
“Jurrien will undergo a further detailed assessment and review with a consultant in the coming days to assess the full extent of the injury, in order to determine the next steps. A further update will be provided in due course. Everyone at the club will be focused on supporting Jurrien at this time.”
The defender’s ability to play across the back four is seen as a key element of Arsenal’s improved squad depth this term, Timber having started at left-back against Forest despite playing more commonly either at centre-back or right-back for Ajax and the Dutch national side.
Oleksandr Zinchenko, Arsenal’s first-choice left-back, is now injury-free but missed the entirety of pre-season and it remains to be seen whether the Ukrainian is deemed ready to start away at Crystal Palace next Monday.
