Arsenal star Jurrien Timber has had an incredible start to the season.
The Dutch international was always viewed as a great player by Arsenal fans after his performances last term, but he has gone up a level this time.
Timber, who has been nominated for the Premier League Player of the Month award for October, has arguably been the best defender in the division this season.
The 24-year-old is getting plenty of praise, not just from Arsenal supporters but back in his home country as well, where a warning has been sent to Virgil van Dijk.
Virgil van Dijk won’t be happy after hearing what is being said about Jurrien Timber
Van Dijk has been regarded as the best centre-back in the world for a few years now.
The Liverpool captain played a big part in helping the Reds win the Premier League last season. He is a leader for the Netherlands national team as well.
However, Van Dijk’s performances for club and country this term haven’t been great.
The defender has seen his side lose four games on the bounce in the Premier League, and their title hopes are hanging by a thread.
Watching Van Dijk struggle while fellow Netherlands defenders like Jurrien Timber and Matthijs de Ligt perform well, Dutch outlet Het Parool have sent a warning to the Liverpool superstar.
Henk Spaan wrote on the outlet: “England whistles with admiration after Jurrien Timber and Matthijs de Ligt.
“Until recently, he (Timber) was thinking about Saka sliding in, now he’s playing something more forward on the inside, so [Bukayo] Saka can stay on the wing. It says everything about his tactical consciousness. He also gave Arsenal’s most passes into the penalty area and had by far the most tackles and interceptions on the team.”
After praising De Ligt’s performances at Manchester United, Spaan fired a warning to the Liverpool captain about his place in the Dutch national team.
“I think Timber and De Ligt are watching Virgil’s form with great interest,” he wrote.
Van Dijk, who knows how good he can be, will not be happy to see his home country’s media question his place in the side because of Timber and others’ brilliance.
Jurrien Timber outperformed Virgil van Dijk for the Netherlands
Timber has mostly played as a right-back since he joined Arsenal, and he is the best player in the world in that role.
However, during the October international break, the former Ajax man was deployed as a central defender in the Netherlands’ win over Malta.
Dutch media outlets rated Timber higher than Van Dijk in that game – that’s how good he was despite playing in a different position.
Van Dijk even praised Timber after the game, but seeing his own country’s press question whether he should keep his place in the side must be really annoying.
However, if Liverpool continue to crumble and the likes of Timber, De Ligt and Micky van de Ven keep impressing, there is a small chance that the Reds’ skipper will have to make way.
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