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Arsenal's Jurrien Timber is pushing to be fit in time for the UEFA Champions League Final -Credit
avid Price/Arsenal FC via Getty ImagesJurrien Timber's prospects of being fit for the UEFA Champions League final "do not look rosy."
This is in spite of the Arsenal defender intensifying his training this week in a determined effort to be ready for the game with Paris Saint-Germain on May 30 and the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Timber has been sidelined since mid-March with a groin injury and has already experienced setbacks in previous comeback attempts.
However, the Dutch full-back is understood to be more optimistic this time around, despite his national team manager, Ronald Koeman, expressing concern that he could be deprived of a key player, as per The Mirror.
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Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman is not optimistic about Timber's outlook -Credit:ANP via Getty Images
Koeman, who will announce his World Cup squad on May 27, said: "Jurrien has been dealing with this for quite some time. It has been on and off.
"He is now training up again to see if he can make the Champions League final and if he is available for the World Cup. It does not look rosy at the moment."
The expectation is that Timber will ramp up his training load this week and potentially rejoin the first-team group ahead of Sunday's final Premier League game of the season at Crystal Palace. A return for that match appears highly unlikely, but Arsenal then face a Paris Saint-Germain side in Budapest that features winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, widely considered among the finest players in the world.
It would be a significant risk, but given that they are already missing Ben White, they would otherwise be forced to deploy center-back Cristhian Mosquera as a makeshift right-back.
That is why Arsenal are eager to bring Timber up to speed, giving him a chance to be fit in time, but should he fail to recover, he faces missing the World Cup and potentially requiring surgery on the problem.
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Timber's unavailability would represent yet another blow for Koeman, who will already be without defender Matthijs de Ligt, midfielder Jerdy Schouten, and forward Xavi Simons through injury.
Meanwhile, fellow Arsenal player Mikel Merino is also racing to return to full training ahead of the Champions League following foot surgery. The Gunners midfielder has been sidelined for four months, looks set to miss the World Cup, but has intensified his rehabilitation over the past week.
He acknowledged that watching from the sidelines has been an enormous challenge, admitting he has "suffered" at times alongside the fans, and that it is even tougher when watching at home on TV with his newborn baby.
Merino said: "It's hard because on the one hand I want to be on the pitch supporting my teammates because I was born to play football
"But if you cannot do it, you have to do it in a different way and make an impact and my role is to give advice, give tips and support in the bad times as well. I try to push for my position now and make everyone put a bit on the table now so we can win a trophy at the end of the season.
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Mikel Merino has been intensifying his rehab of late -Credit:Jasper Wax/Getty Images
"If I'm in the stadium then I'm quite quiet but if I'm at home then I shout at the TV which is not great with the baby sleeping next to me! But I suffer, you can feel stressed like everyone else. When you're on the pitch you don't feel that pressure, you don't feel it so much and you just want to be out there."
Merino maintained that despite losing a significant portion of the campaign to injury, he remains fulfilled and has relished his time back in training.
He continued: "It's a dream to be honest, what you dream of as a kid and you can win the title, the Champions League, they are the things you can only dream of and now you are living them right now.
"I feel blessed, it's a huge opportunity and I'm enjoying being round these people. It's only been two seasons, but I feel like I've been here for a long, long time and I feel part of the family for sure.
"It's great going to work every day, you work hard, it's tough but when you're in the physio room, when you're in the gym, you have good banter. We have an amazing squad and it's time to use it and get to the final stages of the season with good vibes."
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