17 August 2023 , 09:41
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William Saliba has sent a touching message of support to his new Arsenal teammate Jurrien Timber as the defender prepares to undergo surgery for an ACL injury.
Timber only arrived at the Emirates from Ajax last month but had already made a strong impression during the club's pre-season fixtures. However, the 22-year-old is now likely to miss the majority of the season after sustaining a serious knee injury on his Premier League debut against Nottingham Forest.
The versatile Netherlands international was forced off early in the second-half with Arsenal confirming on Wednesday that Timber would require surgery to amend the issue. And Saliba was quick to show his support for his defensive partner on social media after the news was confirmed.
In a post on his Instagram story, Saliba shared an image of himself comforting Timber during the 2-1 win over Forest with the caption: "We will wait for you my bro" complete with a heart emoji.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has admitted that losing Timber for a sustained period would have a significant impact on the Londoners' title hopes.
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Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Thursday, the Spaniard said: “It is a huge blow. Especially for him after just joining the club. We recruited him with clear intentions and what he was bringing to the team was evident.
“I’m more thinking about the resources in the team to do what we want to do. But it’s true he was giving us a lot on both sides.”
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Saliba showed his support for Timber on social media (w.saliba4/Instagram)
Jurrien Timber (Getty Images)It remains to be seen if Arsenal will dip back into the transfer market to source a replacement for Timber after spending in excess of £200million already in the summer window.
And while Arteta hinted that players who are already at the club have the chance to step in Timbers' absence, he refused to rule out bringing in another defender.
He added: “Well, we didn’t plan obviously with this injury. We have to assess now what the options are, what the best way is to get the best out of the players we have. As I said, my biggest challenge now is to get the best out of the players we have.
“I cannot control anything that is not here. And we are always open and we have to be open and react if something happens, not only with an injury but with the market as well – and that’s what we are doing.”