Arsenal’s “smooth” star could be like a new signing in surprise role

As the international break brings domestic football to a standstill for the last time in 2023, Arsenal have the chance to revise their squad options in preparation for the remainder of the 2023/24 campaign.

With it being 12 games into the Premier League season, Mikel Arteta’s side have shown a positive indication that they could fulfil another title charge, however injury woes of late have left the squad looking low on resources.

In the summer, four new faces arrived in north London in the bid to bolster the manager’s options for selection, after the lack of depth became a burden towards the end of the 2022/23 calendar, seeing Arsenal spend over £200m in the transfer market.

Another lucrative shopping spree won’t be financially feasible, although further additions are needed when considering how low Arteta’s squad currently is on quality outside of the favoured XI.

One boost is that summer signing Jurrien Timber is set to return from injury within the first few months of 2024, with the Dutchman’s return set to feel like a new signing for the Gunners, who only got to enjoy 126 competitive minutes of their new arrival.

Jurrien Timber’s injury

In July, Arsenal confirmed the signing of the highly-rated Ajax defender, who arrived at the Emirates for a fee of £38m to bolster Arteta’s back line.

Signing the 22-year-old was an important capture for the north Londoners, who were hunting added versatility to the defence after benefitting from the positional successes of Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White during the 2022/23 campaign.

In Timber, the manager wasn’t just getting a new centre-back, the position he predominantly assumed in Amsterdam, but a highly flexible player with the ability to play on either flank in the back four, as well as being equipped to play in the favoured inverted role.

The 2001-born jewel seemed to fit in well to Arteta’s demands, playing fluidly in pre-season as well as shining in the Community Shield match-up against Manchester City at Wembley prior to the Premier League commencing – enjoying a ‘good full debut’, in the words of the Standard’s Dom Smith.

Deployed at left-back, it looked as though Arsenal had found the perfect mix of Kieran Tierney’s defensive know-how and Zinchenko’s progressive expertise in Timber, however, the smiles surrounding his arrival were short-lived on the opening day of the Premier League season.

50 minutes into the Gunners’ clash with Nottingham Forest at the Emirates in August, the Netherlands international was forced to withdraw due to a knee injury, which was later revealed to be an anterior cruciate ligament tear.

It was suspected that the £38m acquisition would be out of action for around seven months, leaving Arteta back to squad one with his defensive options and without the quality that Timber had showcased in the opening moments of his career at Arsenal.

In October, journalist Chris Wheatley relayed that January could be a possible time for the Dutchman to ease into his return, with the knowledge that an injury as complex as an ACL rupture must be given the maximum time to recover, as per NowArsenal.

It was an agonising blow for the player just as it was for the Premier League outfit who had lost their new signing so early into the campaign, however his return could come at a perfect time for Arteta.

How Jurrien Timber could fit into Arsenal’s team

Prior to his injury, the boss highlighted that Timber’s pre-season performances showed that he is a “really versatile player”, adding that the 22-year-old can be used “in different positions” due to his vast range of ability.

As mentioned, the 5 foot 10 dynamo occupied the centre-back role for Ajax, and began life in north London as a full-back, with Arteta lauding the defender’s “capacity to invert and occupy different spaces”.

What’s interesting about the Utrecht-born star’s ability is that his return could have the potential to even bolster Arsenal’s midfield, an area of the pitch that has been starved of quality due to injury and lack of form so far in 2023/24.

As highlighted by U23 scout Antonio Mango, Timber’s attributes saw him endeavour in cameos in defensive midfield under Erik ten Hag at Ajax, opening a door to the possibility that he could return to such position during the Gunners’ time of need.

Mango dubbed the defender as a “smooth operator” for his approach to play in his homeland, also lauding him as one of the “most intelligent defenders in the game”, with his ability to pass through the lines making him a dangerous outlet from the back.

When studying the two-time Eredivisie winners’ statistics from the 2022/23 Eredivisie campaign, it’s interesting to note that FBref listed Edson Alvarez as one of the most statistically comparable centre-backs to Timber that season.

Alvarez similarly made the move to the Premier League in the summer, signing for West Ham United where he has since prevailed as a stellar defensive midfielder for David Moyes’ side, suggesting that his former teammate could do the same in England.

As portrayed in the table above, the 22-year-old’s 2022/23 statistics support claims that he could be a valuable asset in the deeper areas of midfield for Arteta, when comparing his league stats to those of Arsenal’s defensive midfielders past and present, last season.

Timber’s ability and experience in playing the inverted role gives him a unique insight into playing in central areas more advanced than the back line, handing the manager another option in the engine room as the Gunners’ options continue to run weak.

Not only could the £38m capture’s return bolster the quality in the squad, but could also save the north Londoners millions by exploiting his resources in midfield, rather than spending big on reinforcements in such area.

While the date of Timber’s return remains uncertain, his return to the squad will be well celebrated by those at the Emirates, with a second shot to enjoy their summer signing when the 2023/24 campaign heats up.