Arsenal‘s Jurriën Timber is unsure whether he will feature against Serbia on Sunday, after in the Netherlands’ 2-2 draw against Greece on Thursday.
That was the defender’s first start for the national team since last November. He picked up an ankle injury in March that forced him to miss the fixtures that month.
Timber regained fitness and started in Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in May.
The Netherlands international then suffered a groin injury, resulting in him missing the World Cup and pre-season with Arsenal. He returned to the pitch in September and has made two appearances for the Gunners this season.
Arsenal player wants to regain full fitness
Xavi has called up the 25-year-old for this international break, and he didn’t train for the first few days. Therefore, the new manager dropped him from the squad for the 1-1 draw against Germany.
Jurriën Timber came off the bench in the win over Serbia before starting against Greece on Thursday. The Arsenal man partnered Liverpool start Virgil van Dijk in the heart of the defence and Feyenoord’s Gjivai Zechiël replaced him in the 78th minute.
After the match, he spoke to Vandaag Inside and Voetbal International have relayed his comments.
He said: “I am tired, though. I have obviously been out for a while, but I need to regain my rhythm and get fit now.”
“It wasn’t great [his performance]. Very sloppy, we lost a lot of duels. But I look at myself first. Ultimately, I am happy that we came back, but the first half wasn’t good enough.”
When asked whether he will feature against Serbia on Sunday, Timber explained: “We’ll see. I have to see how I wake up tomorrow. This match helps with that; I generally feel good.”
Arsenal star on positives and Xavi
Xavi had started Jurriën’s brother, Quinten Timber, in midfield against Greece. VI says it was the first time the brothers sang the national anthem together on the pitch. The two were standing next to each other.
“The ultimate dream was to stand on the pitch together, but that moment during the national anthem was also very special. That wasn’t intentional, but apparently, he was standing at the front too, and then suddenly we were standing next to each other,” he added.
On working under new Oranje manager, Jurriën said: “I am looking at it very positively. We have had good, intensive weeks. Everyone is full of energy.”
“Everyone always talks about the potential of this Dutch national team; we are working towards unlocking that.’ We know what we are capable of; from there, we must get better.”
