Netherlands lose Jurrien Timber to groin injury ahead of FIFA World Cup; Geertruida called up
New York, June 9
The Netherlands have suffered a major setback ahead of the FIFA World Cup after defender Jurrien Timber was ruled out of the tournament due to a groin injury, the Dutch football federation announced on Monday.
According to ESPN, the 24-year-old Arsenal full-back, who last featured as a substitute in Arsenal's UEFA Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, will leave the Dutch camp following the team's final World Cup warm-up match against Uzbekistan.
"The 24-year-old defender has not recovered sufficiently from a groin injury to take part in the World Cup in a medically responsible manner," the Netherlands said in a statement, according to ESPN.
"In consultation with the medical staff, it has therefore been decided that Timber will leave the national team's pre-camp in New York after the game against Uzbekistan," the statement added.
Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman has drafted in Sunderland defender Lutsharel Geertruida as Timber's replacement ahead of the tournament.
"Over the last couple of days, we'd already had the feeling that this would be the decision. In the end, we sat down with Jurriën late last night and again this morning, and unfortunately, we had to make this decision," Koeman told Dutch broadcaster NOS, as per ESPN.
"With Jurriën in the squad, we have eight defenders; without him, there are seven, and that's not enough. So you have to make a decision. We had Geertruida with the squad right up until the match against Algeria, so it wouldn't be too much of a struggle to bring him in. We didn't wait any longer because his situation wasn't expected to improve any time soon," Koeman added.
Timber managed around an hour on the pitch in Arsenal's Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain, including extra time, before the match was decided on penalties. However, Koeman declined to blame the Premier League club for the player's condition.
"You can't blame the club, and I don't want to either. It is clear, however, that those minutes didn't help," he said.
"If he'd only had to play one more match in the coming period, it might still have been possible. But a major tournament wasn't on the cards. He hasn't been fit for a long time and still has symptoms that aren't healing quickly, meaning he won't be match fit in the short term," the Dutch coach concluded.
The Netherlands begin their World Cup campaign against Japan on June 14 before facing Sweden and Tunisia in the group stage.
— ANI
Reader Comments
As an Indian football lover, I still remember the 2010 final when Netherlands came so close. This injury could really hurt their defensive stability. But hey, that's football - injuries are part of the game. Good luck to Geertruida!
Koeman is right not to blame Arsenal - clubs always want their players match fit, but sometimes these things happen. The real test will be how Netherlands cope without Timber's versatility. Their group with Japan and Sweden is tricky.
Tough blow for the Dutch. Timber has been growing as a player at Arsenal. But with de Ligt, van Dijk, and Ake still available, they have decent cover. Geertruida is an interesting call-up - young lad with promise.
Hoping Timber recovers fully soon! But I do wonder if Koeman could have managed his workload better in the warm-up games. Still, it's better to lose a player now than during the tournament. All the best to the Dutch squad! 💪
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