Ajax defender Jurrien Timber 'prefers Arsenal move over Bayern Munich'

Having come through the youth setup at the Dutch giants, the 22-year-old has established himself as another player to successfully make the transitio into the first team.

A total of 121 appearances have been made in all competitions, while the versatile Dutchman has also earned 15 caps for the Netherlands.

However, Timber, for some time, has been tipped to move elsewhere, speculation persisting over a switch to Manchester United in 2022 where he could have been reunited with former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag.

Instead, Timber spent another year in Amsterdam, a disappointing one at that as Ajax finished in third position in the Eredivisie and missed out on Champions League qualification.

With two years left on his contract, Timber will now be allowed to depart the Johan Cruyff Arena, and it was alleged earlier this week that Arsenal had emerged as a potential destination.

A report indicated that the Gunners had failed with a £30m bid, Ajax preferring to recoup a fee somewhere in the region of £50m as soon as possible if Arsenal are going to follow up their initial interest.

According to De Telegraaf, Timber has made it clear that he wants to move to last season's Premier League runners-up rather than contemplate a transfer to Bayern Munich.

ESPN claims that the Bundesliga champions are ready to take advantage of Ajax rejecting the first official bid from the North London outfit.

Thomas Tuchel is in the market for a versatile right-sided defender with Benjamin Pavard expected to depart the Allianz Arena before the end of August.

In theory, Timber would represent a like-for-like alternative, yet De Telegraaf says that the player currently only has eyes for a transfer to the Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta is eager to secure competition for Ben White, as well as having a different option for the middle of his backline after Arsenal struggled to cope with the absence of William Saliba during the 2022-23 run-in.

Timber possesses the ability to move in-field and assist with the midfield, much like Oleksandr Zinchenko did from left-back during his first campaign since leaving Manchester City for Arteta's side.