Mikel Arteta has found his new secret weapon at Arsenal and nobody has yet realised it

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Jurrien Timber is quickly becoming one of the most important players in this Arsenal team, with his new role under Mikel Arteta going under the radar.

Arsenal produced a huge statement win in the Champions League by beating Bayern Munich 3-1 and another monstrous performance at the Emirates Stadium.

Goals from Jurrien Timber, Gabriel Martinelli and Noni Madueke ensured that the Gunners are now the only team in the competition with a perfect record intact.

There were several very impressive performances from Arsenal’s players, but Timber’s importance to Mikel Arteta’s team is now so clear and here’s why.

Jurrien Timber is such an underrated threat at set pieces for Arsenal

Timber has become such an underrated threat at set pieces for Arsenal, which is so important given the absence of Gabriel Magalhaes.

The Dutch defender opened the scoring for the North London side with a very impressive header from a corner, which found its way past Manuel Neuer.

Many Arsenal fans will remember Timber’s superb headed goal against Leeds United earlier this season, and his aerial ability is now such a useful asset for the Gunners.

When Gabriel suffered a groin injury, there was a big concern that Arteta’s team had just lost one of their biggest assets, given how good he was at set-pieces.

However, Timber is showing that he could be the man to step up and replace the Brazilian in these situations with another headed goal against Bayern.

Timber has surprised many at Arsenal, including Eberechi Eze, with regard to just how good he can be, and it was another stellar performance versus Serge Gnabry on Wednesday evening.

Martin Keown hails Declan Rice’s corner delivery

In addition to Arsenal’s threat in the air, it helps when you have a player who can deliver a set-piece as well as Declan Rice can.

Last season, Nicolas Jover spotted Rice’s quality from corners, and ever since, the Gunners have not looked back.

Speaking after the match, Martin Keown highlighted just how strong the England international is at putting his delivery bang on the money.

The Arsenal legend told TNT Sports: “We had this series of corners, and Declan is so good, I can’t express the quality of his delivery, is on the nail.

He just puts it into a spot where Arsenal look favourite every time. He started doing this in the middle of last season. They went away to Dubai, he started taking the corners, and it’s been like this ever since.”