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Arsenal have welcomed back Jurrien Timber to first-team training as the Dutchman reportedly stepped up his recovery from a devastating ACL injury.
According to the Mirror, Timber, a £38million summer signing from Ajax, ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in his first-ever half of Premier League football against Nottingham Forest back in August.
Despite their impressive season, the versatile defender’s presence has been missed as the Gunners have utilized both Oleksandr Zinchenko and Jakub Kiwior at left-back, with Timber also able to perform admirably on the right side of defense.
The 22-year-old was back in action with his teammates on Wednesday as they trained at the Emirates Stadium, where he suffered that injury six months ago.
Timber is not yet back in full training, but his presence with the rest of the first-team group on Wednesday was well received by his teammates, and Mikel Arteta has said that he is hopeful of having him back before the end of the season.
Speaking before last Saturday’s Premier League clash at home to Newcastle, Arteta said: “I really hope so (he’ll play again this season), he’s doing really well.
“He’s been around some players on the pitch and we are going to start to do some bits with us in the next week or so. Then we need to see how that evolves, his confidence levels, his fitness levels, and hopefully, then the answer is ‘yes’.”
Arsenal are enjoying a free week having been eliminated from the FA Cup by Liverpool at the third round stage, and Arteta opted to stage Wednesday’s training session at the Emirates before Monday night’s visit to Bramall Lane to face Sheffield United.
The Gunners boss is on the cusp of welcoming several players back into his squad, with several other players closer to a return than Timber.
Zinchenko, fellow full-back option Takehiro Tomiyasu, and midfielder Thomas Partey are all edging closer to a return to first-team training, while Gabriel Jesus and Fabio Vieira were able to train with the group on Wednesday.
Jesus has been absent since the 2-1 win at Nottingham Forest at the end of January, while Vieira last played in the 3-1 win over Burnley in mid-November.
