Arsenal right-back Jurrien Timber has been discussing his long-running battle with a groin injury which included his desperate push to play in the Champions League final before he was forced to drop out of Holland's World Cup squad
Jurrien Timber
Jurrien Timber pushed his body to the limit to play in the Champions League final for Arsenal last season
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Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber insists it was "a miracle" that he was able to feature in last season's Champions League final.
The 25-year-old, speaking while away on international duty with Holland, is still managing his fitness despite making his first start since March 14 last Saturday in the 3-0 defeat at Brighton.
Timber has ultimately paid the price for pushing his body to the limit last term as he was later forced to withdraw from Holland's World Cup squad due to injury.
He explained, reflecting on the unfortunate sequence of events: "Still, calling it a relapse is too harsh. You know, I was injured for a total of 25 weeks before and after the World Cup. To be honest, I only felt good during that week of the Champions League final. It was a miracle [that I played]."
The flying Dutchman, who was eager to bolster Arsenal's ranks after they lost Ben White to a knee injury just 20 days before the final in Budapest, ended up playing 54 minutes including extra-time after entering the pitch in the second half.
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Upon teaming up with Oranje for their pre-World Cup camp, Timber soon realised things were not right. He added: "From the outside, it all looked good. But I felt I couldn't go all out. You can get away with that in training, not in a match."
Having also missed Euro 2024 due to injury, Timber wouldn't let go without a fight. It was his dream to play on the biggest stage of all alongside his twin brother Quinten but he finally conceded defeat before Holland's warm-up fixture against Uzbekistan in New York following talks with Ruud van Nistelrooy.
As the team departed for Kansas City from Westchester County Airport, Timber boarded a plane to Miami. He recalled: "Leaving my brother and those other guys behind really hit hard.
"It was for just a few days. I had worked hard for two months to get fit again and make it to the Champions League final, and I had hardly any days off. After dropping out of the World Cup, I noticed that I needed to do nothing for a while, also to recover from the disappointment."
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - JUNE 8: Jurrien Timber of Holland, Nigel de Jong of KNVB during the International Friendly match between Holland v Uzbekistan at the Icahn Stadium on June 8, 2026 in New York United States (Photo by Roy Lazet/Soccrates/Getty Images)
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Timber would watch the crux of Holland's matches from his home in London and a minor surgical procedure then followed. He was back on the pitch for the first time this season in the 2-0 win at Sunderland before playing an hour at the Amex last weekend.
New Oranje boss Xavi has since clarified that Timber is available to face Germany in the Nations League on Thursday but his condition needs to be protected carefully.
He said after Timber followed an individual training programme on Monday and Tuesday away from the main group: "We are now focused on tomorrow, not on the rest of the matches. We are ready. We have to be a bit careful with Jurrien Timber, who was injured for a long time. But he is available, that goes for everyone."