Newcastle remain keen on signing Tierney this summer. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
2. Does Kieran Tierney stay?
Tierney has been linked with a move away all summer, and he was left out of Saturday’s matchday squad for the victory over Forest. Newcastle and Real Sociedad are the latest clubs linked, although a loan move looks more likely than a permanent sale.
Tierney had a fine pre-season despite the talk, and the player has always seemed content about staying with the club in 2023/24. However, with Oleksandr Zinchenko taking his spot at left-back combined with the additions of Timber and Jakub Kiwior, it looked like Tierney’s time with the club was over.
Does this injury change that? Or do Arsenal still intend to sell the Scotsman if a serious bid comes in?
Continued on the next slide…
August 14, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>1. Reduces defensive depth</h2>
<p>Two important injuries to the Gunners already and it’s not even September. Maybe it’s not time to panic, but losing Timber certainly hurts the depth of Arsenal.</p>
<p>They are in four competitions and a constant move within the rotation was certainly going to benefit the normal starting XI with Timber capable of performing across the back four.</p>
<p>His work with the ball was set to add another layer to Arsenal’s build-up, while his recovery speed and athleticism would’ve aided the Gunners in defensive transition. In the absence of Timber, there’s no doubt that Arsenal’s backline is more vulnerable from a depth perspective, but Mikel Arteta still has several options, especially at left-back.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #2 Timber injury implication </a>
</div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_135868" class="wp-caption alignnone">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-135868" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1706,w_2560/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1588577412-scaled.jpeg" alt="" width="2560" height="1706" srcset="https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1588577412-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1588577412-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1588577412-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://paininthearsenal.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2017/07/1588577412-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Newcastle remain keen on signing Tierney this summer. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)</p>
</div>
<h2>2. Does Kieran Tierney stay?</h2>
<p>Tierney has been linked with a move away all summer, and he was <a title="Why was Kieran Tierney left out of Arsenal’s matchday squad?" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/kieran-tierney-left-out-arsenal-matchday-squad-transfer/" rel="">left out of Saturday’s matchday squad for the victory over Forest</a>. Newcastle and Real Sociedad are the latest clubs linked, although a loan move looks more likely than a permanent sale.</p>
<p>Tierney had a fine pre-season despite the talk, and the player has always seemed content about staying with the club in 2023/24. However, with Oleksandr Zinchenko taking his spot at left-back combined with the additions of Timber and Jakub Kiwior, it looked like Tierney’s time with the club was over.</p>
<p>Does this injury change that? Or do Arsenal still intend to sell the Scotsman if a serious bid comes in?</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #3 and #4 Timber injury implications </a>
</div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div class="embed ">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jakub Kiwior… this is your time to step up. <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"https://t.co/uPMGC3fRfp">pic.twitter.com/uPMGC3fRfp
<p>— Max. ✍🏼 (@AFCMax9) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/08/14/4-implications-jurrien-timber-knee-injury/2/"https://twitter.com/AFCMax9/status/1691099139965440000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>August 14, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>3. Trusting Jakub Kiwior</h2>
<p>Barring any setbacks, when Zinchenko is healthy, he will occupy the left-back position and drift into midfield.</p>
<p>But given the injury to Timber, Arsenal could potentially delve into the market for another option. However, having already spent over £200m this summer, I don’t think Arsenal are keen to spend much more specifically to bolster their defence.</p>
<p>Kiwior will instead probably get more of a chance this season as he did at the end of 2022/23. When Saliba went down, it took a few matches before he was installed in the starting XI, but once he got his chance, he did well as a centre-back on the left side.</p>
<p>While he may not possess the versatility of Zinchenko or Timber in creating chaos in the midfield or joining the attack, he is a strong defender who should be considered by Arteta.</p>
<h2>4. Questions about the medical team</h2>
<p>Timber did look like he was hurt after the challenge that got him a yellow card to end the first half.</p>
<p>I for sure thought he was going to be subbed off at the half. However, Arteta said the doctors on his staff looked at him and said he was good to go.</p>
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<p>Last month, the head of the medical staff Gary O’Driscoll left for Manchester United. He has been with the Gunners since 2009. One can not be certain of the discussions between Arteta and his medical staff during the half-time interval on Saturday, but after losing two key players this early, one can question if Arsenal have hired the best team on the medical side.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
