Arsenal’s Dutch defender Jurrien Timber has been a key figure in the club’s standout 2025/2026 campaign, contributing to their strong performances in both the Premier League and Champions League. Timber has made 20 appearances in the Premier League and five in the Champions League, cementing his place as one of the team’s most consistent players.
From Fan to Star
For Timber, his journey to the Arsenal first team is a dream come true. The 22-year-old has long been an admirer of the club, having grown up as an Arsenal fan, inspired by his older brother’s loyalty to the team. “I started supporting Arsenal because my oldest brother was an Arsenal fan. Often you follow the ones you look up to, so I followed his club,” Timber explained. “I watched Arsenal a lot when I was young, and eventually signing for Arsenal is a dream coming true. It was massive,” he added.
Timber still cherishes the moment he signed for the club, admitting that looking back on it helps him maintain perspective. “Sometimes you have to go back to that moment, that first moment when you signed, to understand the feeling of how proud you were, signing for Arsenal,” he said.
Learning from Legends
While Timber shares the pitch with a number of illustrious Dutch players at Arsenal, he reveals that his early hero was English midfielder Jack Wilshere. Although Wilshere’s career at Arsenal was cut short, his impact on Timber was profound. “He was someone that could do a lot from such a young age already, he played with so much courage, he was elegant, such a nice player to watch, he made Arsenal look nice,” Timber recalled. “Of course, Robin van Persie was also a player I admired, but Wilshere was the one I enjoyed watching the most.”
As a fullback, Timber is now part of a defensive unit that has been one of the strongest in the league, and he credits the team’s success to collective effort. “It’s cooperation, not just the backline. I think it’s everyone. It’s something that the club and the manager have been working on for a long time,” he explained. Timber also values the high standards set within the squad. “The players I play with, lots of the defenders, I can learn from every day, and I think we make each other better. We keep each other sharp and on our toes,” he concluded.
