Arsenal are facing an anxious wait over the fitness of Jurrien Timber ahead of the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain later this month.
The Dutch defender is stepping up his recovery from a groin injury in a desperate attempt to be ready for the showdown in Budapest on May 30, but concerns remain over whether he will recover in time.
Timber has not played since mid-March and has already suffered setbacks during earlier comeback attempts, leaving Arsenal cautious over pushing him too quickly during the final weeks of the season.
There is still some optimism internally that the 24-year-old could return to first-team training before the end of the week, although his chances of featuring in Sunday’s final Premier League game against Crystal Palace appear slim.
The bigger target remains the Champions League final, where Arsenal could desperately need Timber’s pace and defensive quality against a PSG side boasting dangerous attackers such as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
However, Ronald Koeman has admitted the situation currently looks concerning from the Netherlands’ perspective ahead of this summer’s World Cup.
Koeman said Timber’s situation “does not look rosy at the moment” after revealing the Arsenal defender has continued to struggle with recurring issues linked to the injury.
The Netherlands boss is expected to name his World Cup squad on May 27 and Timber’s lack of match fitness could leave him facing a race against time on two fronts.
Arsenal are already preparing for the possibility of being without him in Budapest.
Ben White has already been ruled out for the rest of the season, which has left Mikel Arteta increasingly short of natural options at right-back.
That situation could force the Arsenal manager to continue using Cristhian Mosquera as a makeshift full-back if Timber cannot recover in time.
There is also concern that surgery could eventually become necessary if the defender’s recovery continues to stall.
Meanwhile, Mikel Merino is also hoping to boost Arsenal before the final after increasing his training workload following foot surgery.
The midfielder has been sidelined for four months and is expected to miss the World Cup, but Arsenal remain hopeful he could still return to full training before facing PSG.
Merino admitted watching from the sidelines has been difficult during Arsenal’s title push and Champions League run, but insisted the squad remains united and fully focused on ending the season with silverware.
With the Premier League title now within touching distance and a European final still to come, Arsenal are continuing to push for positive injury news at exactly the right moment of the campaign.