Mikel Arteta confirms key defender is a doubt for second-leg vs PSG

Arsenal may be without the services of starting right-back Jurrien Timber for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night.

The Gunners need to overturn a 1-0 deficit in the French capital to advance into their first Champions League final since 2006, with Ousmane Dembele's early goal separating the two teams at the Emirates on Tuesday.

Timber wasn't involved on Saturday as Arsenal's poor domestic form continued with a 2-1 home defeat to Bournemouth. Declan Rice opened the scoring on his 100th appearance for the club in the first-half, but two concessions from set-pieces allowed the Cherries to snatch all three points.

While Timber was left out of the squad, Arteta opted for a strong starting XI which failed to pay dividends. The boss made just two changes from Tuesday's team, while Luis Enrique made ten alterations for PSG's Ligue 1 bout with Strasbourg.

Jurrien Timber an injury doubt for semi-final second leg vs PSG

Timber wasn't expected to be in the starting XI at the weekend after receiving treatment during the second-half of the first leg ahead of his late substituion. Ben White replaced the Dutchman for the final few minutes of the contest and was in Arteta's lineup for Bournemouth's visit.

While there were reports that Timber was merely resting ahead of the return leg in Paris, Arteta provided a concerning update regarding the defender's status for Wednesday's game. The Spaniard was asked whether Timber could miss the trip to Parc des Princes, to which he replied (via Chris Wheatley): "Yeah, there's a chance."

The right-back is thought to only be dealing with a minor niggle, and we can only hope that he recovers in time for the all-important fixture. Arsenal desperately need him.

Timber struggled early on against Khvicha Kvaratskhelia down PSG's left but settled into the contest and was able to eventually tame the Georgian, whose influence was fairly limited in the second half as Arsenal had more of the game. He's an outstanding one-on-one defender who manifested some of his best work in the quarter-final against Real Madrid, keeping Vinicius Junior relatively subdued over the two legs.

I'd fear for White if he was thrust into a starting position against this PSG frontline. The Englishman was once a staple of Arteta's project, but he's endured an injury-hit campaign. He's struggled for form and rhythm since returning from knee surgery, and would be a mammoth ask to produce on the big stage in Paris.

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