Looking into a player’s statistical profile always brings up interesting clues as to what type of signing Arsenal might be making. However, Jurrien Timber presents some hugely impressive metrics and clear reasons why Arsenal want him.
In terms of positioning, it is worth noting that the Dutchman played exclusively at right centre-half last season for Ajax. Although he has featured in the right full-back role on occasion, this certainly isn’t his primary position.
That said, neither was it for Ben White and look how that has changed. The Arsenal situation is simple after William Saliba’s injury derailed the end of season run-in and a move for Timber makes sense to reinforce the defence but also push the Frenchman to not get too comfortable with his role.
Taking a look at Saliba in comparison, alongside some other centre-halves who have been linked to the club, Mohamed Simakan and Edmond Tapsoba, we begin to get a picture of what Timber will bring in comparison to his peers.
The first thing to note is that compared to those aforementioned peers, Timber is the only player to have started every single league game last season. His reliability is an asset that Arsenal will be very keen on indeed.
Timber shows aggression in the tackle and is keen to win the ball back. In terms of his tackle frequency Timber, with 1.39 tackles per 90, beats Simakan (1.3) and Saliba (1.27) but falls short of Tapsoba (1.6).
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That said, he tops the tackle success charts at a canter with 72.6%, beating Simakan (66.2%) Saliba (59.1%) and Tapsoba (58.8%). Although the shortest of all four, it certainly does not affect how efficient his tackling is.
Blocks and clearances per 90 for Timber (0.68 and 1.99) however are the lowest in comparison to the others, other than Saliba’s 0.49 blocks per 90. That said, this is likely due to both Ajax and Arsenal’s possession dominance compared to RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen who face plenty more attacks to repel than the aforementioned duo.
Aerially, and rather unsurprisingly, Timber falls short of the others, no pun intended. His 2.82 aerial duels per 90 and 47.4% success rate drops below that of Simakan (3.89 and 60.3%) Saliba (3.58 and 55.2%) and Tapsoba (3.07 and 56.1%).
Passing though is where again Timber shows how impressive he is. He attempted 81.5 passes per match, significantly more than Saliba (69.6) Tapsoba (69.3) and Simakan (68.4).
Not only that but at 91.6% accuracy he has the best success rate with his passing compared the Arsenal (91%) Bayer Leverkusen (69.3%) and RB Leipzig (81.3%) defenders. And in terms of the progression of his passing he again tops the field.
With passes into the final third per 90, Timber manages 9.76 compared to Simakan (5) Tapsoba (4.83) and Saliba (4.14). And also the Dutchman’s passing into the box per 90 at 1.04 is the highest with Simakan (0.99) Tapsoba (0.28) and Saliba (0.11) falling short.
Lastly, when in possession he shows great technical skill and confidence, attempting 1.13 take-ons per 90 with a 50% success rate. This compares well to Saliba (0.41 and 72.7%) Simakan (1.91 and 38.7%) and Tapsoba (0.78 and 64%).
Regarding progressive carries per 90 and carries into the final third per 90 though he really stands out with 2.37 and 1.99 respectively. Even compared to Simakan (1.98 and 1.42) who has played several games in a full back role and both Saliba (0.49 and 0.52) and Tapsoba (1.25 and 0.44) do not come close.
The Dutchman is a real star and surprisingly the youngest of the four players we have looked at today having just turned 22 this June. It is not surprising that Arsenal very much want the player, the question is will they be successful in their attempts to sign him?
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