Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber has been ruled out of the Netherlands' World Cup campaign with a groin injury, the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) confirmed on Monday. The 24-year-old, who had been out since mid-March with a groin problem, returned to play the second half of the Champions League final on 30 May, coming on as a 66th-minute substitute against Paris St-Germain. Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta had declared Timber "fit" to play in that final. But the KNVB said Timber had "not recovered sufficiently" to take part in the tournament in a "medically responsible manner". "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 [friendly] game against Uzbekistan," the KNVB added. Timber, capped 23 times for the Netherlands since his debut in June 2021, has been replaced by Lutsharel Geertruida. The 25-year-old defender spent last season on loan at Sunderland from RB Leipzig. The Netherlands face Japan in their Group F opener on 14 June before taking on Sweden and Tunisia.
Meanwhile, Brazil's Neymar has been given a boost in his recovery from a calf injury. The 34-year-old, Brazil's all-time leading scorer with 79 goals in 128 appearances, tore a grade-two muscle in his calf last month. A further scan on Monday showed "good progress", the Brazilian Football Confederation said, with Neymar continuing his recovery and physical preparation. He has missed Brazil's warm-up friendlies against Panama and Egypt and faces a race to be fit for their World Cup opener against Morocco on 13 June. Neymar, who returned to his first professional club Santos in early 2025, has been plagued by injuries in recent seasons, including a ruptured ACL and meniscus in his left knee in October 2023. He is hoping to appear at his fourth World Cup, having featured in 2014, 2018 and 2022.
“Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber has been ruled out of the Netherlands' World Cup campaign with a groin injury.”