BREAKING NEWS: Mikel Arteta is undergoing personal training with Jurrin Timber in preparation for their London Derby matchup against Chelsea.

Jurrien Timber is targeting a return to training in late January and is aiming to play a significant role in the Champions League knock out stages.

When will Jurrien Timber return from ACL tear?

Arsenal have received a couple of injury boosts in recent weeks with Gabriel Martinelli and Thomas Partey returning to the fold, and there’s good news regarding Jurrien Timber’s recovery from his ACL tear.

Signed from Ajax in the summer, Timber looked set to immediately become a pivotal part of Mikel Arteta’s defence given his versatile and technically sound profile.

The Dutchman quickly impressed Arsenal supporters with his performances in pre-season, particularly during the Gunners’ Community Shield victory over Manchester City. As a result, Timber was included in Arteta’s first Premier League starting XI of the season as Nottingham Forest visited the Emirates.

However, disaster struck as the defender twice went down clutching his knee, eventually being withdrawn after half-time, and it was revealed that he’d torn his ACL. The 22-year-old was initially expected to miss the vast majority, if not all, of his debut season, but the latest reports suggest Timbe will return sooner than many believed.

Arsenal star Jurrien Timber to return quicker than expected from ACL tear

There have been nothing but positive updates regarding Timber’s recovery, and there’s hope the defender will be back in action between next February and March. The Dutchman is currently on track to return to training in January and play a part in the latter stages of Arsenal’s Champions League campaign.

However, the Gunners still have work to do if they’re to progress from Group B after they were beaten by Lens on Matchday 2.

Nevertheless, all the signs are pointing towards Timber being available for the 2023/24 run-in which will be a major boost for Arteta. The Gunners’ 2022/23 season was compromised at the death by a lack of defensive depth following injuries sustained by William Saliba and Takehiro Tomiyasu.

Timber could also be joined at the club by none other than his twin brother in January, too. 90min reports that Arsenal have been left impressed by Quentin Timber during their scouting trips to Rotterdam where they’ve reportedly been tracking Feyenoord striker Santiago Gimenez.