Arteta wants Timber 2.0 as Arsenal target wonderkid with HUGE expectations

Cameron Smith

• 28 Dec 2023 01:39 CST
• 4 min read

Arsenal are hoping to bolster their defence next year, as Mikel Arteta eyes a Premier League title charge, and Ajax wonderkid Jorrel Hato has been sounded out as a potential target.

The 17-year-old has been compared to current Gunners star Jurrien Timber following his breakout onto the senior stage in Amsterdam, and Hato could follow his countryman in leaving Ajax for north London.

Timber, 22, joined Arsenal for €40 million this summer, but suffered an ACL injury on his Premier League debut and he has been out of action ever since.

He is expected to return in the new year, but it remains to be seen where he fits in Arteta’s current system. Timber started the Community Shield win over Manchester City at left-back and he could replace Oleksandr Zinchenko in that role when he is fully fit once again.

However, Hato could also play that role, given he is left-footed and has recently played at left-back for Ajax, despite being a natural centre-back.

The Dutchman made his senior debut in January 2023 and he has already racked up 40 first-team appearances. He has also played 100% of Ajax’s Eredivisie minutes this campaign.

Jorrel Hato to join Arsenal from Ajax?

According to The Athletic, Hato has been identified as a key transfer target by the Gunners. Nico Schlotterbeck and Matthijs de Ligt are both admired too, but the Ajax teenager has been touted to follow Timber to the Emirates Stadium.

The report states: “Arsenal are also interested in Ajax’s 17-year-old defender Jorrel Hato. The teenager has been a rare bright spot in a troubled season for the Amsterdam club, wearing the captain’s armband on occasion, and has already received his first cap for the Dutch senior team.

“Hato plays as a left-sided centre-back or left-back, so would complement Timber. Arsenal believe Ajax’s game model is analogous to their own, hence Timber’s swift adaptation.

Hato would not come cheap, however, and Arsenal may decide they need someone more experienced to help in the run-in. A short-term loan signing remains the most likely option.”

The Ajax defender is regarded as one of Europe’s most talented youngsters and he certainly has lofty expectations for his career.

In October, he told ELF Voetbal, as per Football.London: “I want to win the Champions League, be a starter for the Dutch national team for as long as possible and I hope that one day people will say: 'That Hato was one of the best defenders of his generation.'

Hato was also asked about Timber during the interview. “Unfortunately he was seriously injured in his first Premier League game for Arsenal, but he is still young and has a bright future ahead of him,” he said.

“In any case, the move to Arsenal was a wonderful one for him. It is also my dream to one day make such a transfer, but I realise that I still have a very long way to go.”