Arsenal confirm Jurrien Timber to undergo ACL surgery after injury sustained on Premier League debut

Arsenal have confirmed that defender Jurrien Timber is set to undergo surgery for an anterior cruciate ligament injury which will rule him out "for a period of time".

Timber went off injured in the Gunners' opening weekend victory over Nottingham Forest - a match in which he made his competitive debut for the club having arrived in the summer - with the Dutch international undergoing tests since then to ascertain the extent of the issue.

On Wednesday afternoon, the club released a statement on their official website, stating: “Further to detailed assessments with consultant specialists since Saturday, we can confirm that Jurrien Timber has sustained an injury to his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.

“Jurrien will undergo surgery in the coming days and will be out of action for a period of time.

“The support and expertise from our medical team and everyone at the club will now be focussed on Jurrien’s rehabilitation programme, to ensure he recovers well and is back playing as soon as possible.”

The 22-year-old suffered the injury in stoppage time at the end of the first half in North London, but was not taken off until early in the second period.

His absence may force Mikel Arteta back into the transfer market despite spending £40 million on the versatile defender, who arrived from Ajax.

Left-sided defenders Nuno Tavares and Kieran Tierney have both been linked with moves away from the Emirates, but one or both of those players could be kept in light of the injury to Timber.

The club are also reportedly interested in Manchester City defenders Aymeric Laporte - linked with a move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr - and Joao Cancelo, but there could be difficulty in convincing City to sell to a club that came closest to pipping them to last year’s Premier League title.

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