Medical set for second signing – Arsenal second signing set to undergo medical in the next 48hrs – NOT DECLAN RICE
Reports from the Netherlands suggest an Arsenal move for Jurrien Timber is now closer than ever.
De Telegraaf write that after a verbal agreement between Arsenal and Ajax over a €42m (£36.1m) deal with €5m (£4.3m) in bonuses, the deal is in the hands of the clubs’ lawyers.
Both the Gunners and Ajax want the transfer to go through in the new financial year, so now that we’ve entered July, the deal is expected to be completed.
Timber’s medical is reportedly pencilled in for the beginning of next week, and the player is working hard at Ajax’s training ground in the meantime. He wants to be fit and ready for his new club if and when a deal goes through.
Former Arsenal head of recruitment Sven Mislintat now works as Ajax’s technical director, and AD report that he initially wanted Timber to be one of the key players of the future at Ajax.
Mislintat preferred to sell Edson Alvarez and Mohammed Kudus to raise funds, but Timber made it clear he wanted to move to Arsenal, and the Gunners made a concrete offer.
With speculation around Alvarez and Kudus continuing in a relatively insubstantial manner, the Timber deal ended up being the easiest one to get sorted.
Mikel Arteta and Edu reportedly believe Timber is capable of operating as an inverted right-back at Arsenal, playing in midfield when the team are in possession.
Oleksandr Zinchenko played that role on the other side last season, but Arsenal finished the campaign with Thomas Partey playing the inverted right-back role in Zinchenko’s injury absence.
Timber would be a better fit for the position, with a lot more experience at right-back and plenty of quality on the ball too.
The 22-year-old made 47 appearances for Ajax in the 2022/23 campaign, and he’s also a Dutch international, playing 15 times for the national team.
