Jurrien Timber says he's not wed to any particular position and believes his versatility will help him earn more minutes in the season ahead.

Recruited from Ajax last summer, it was widely assumed the Holland international would function as an inverted right-back, mirroring the role played by Oleksandr Zinchenko in the 22/23 campaign.

As it turned out, Arteta opted to deploy his new signing at left-back. It was an experiment that was going well - a swashbuckling performance against Barcelona in Los Angeles was followed by another impressive showing versus Manchester City in the Community Shield - only for disaster to strike in the opening league game of the season.

After receiving medical treatment on either side of half time, Timber limped from the field after 50 minutes with tests later confirming an ACL injury. The road to recovery was long and he didn't play again for the first team until a late cameo in the final game of the campaign against Everton.

The question now on everybody's lips is where Arteta will use Timber this season, especially with the club well served at left-back and with another, Riccardo Calafiori, reportedly on the way.

It's a conversation that must have happened between player and manager, but Timber isn't giving anything away just yet.

"I have played everywhere in the back to be fair. Last pre-season I started a lot as a left-back and I enjoyed it as well so I am happy to play," he told Football.London.

"I spoke about it with Ben White as well. I think it's good to be versatile just to play more positions. You're also able to get more minutes then, I think. And the coach can put you in more places. It's nice for him as well. And I'm just hoping to play anywhere."

"I think it [competition for places] is good. And it's good for the team. At the end of the day, you want to win prizes and you need everyone for that. So, I think it's fun and good for everyone to lift each other up."

Judging by his other comments, Timber is definitely one of life's 'glass half full' people. Asked how he coped with the injury and, specifically, its timing just after his big-money move, he told Hayters: "I look at it in a positive way. I try to look at it in a positive way. I came out well. I feel good anyway. It's a year later, time goes quick. But I enjoy my time here and I'm excited to start again.

He added: "You have to look at how lucky you are as well. And that's the way I look at it. Last year, I had time to work with some fantastic physios.

"I had good people around me, the teammates were great. So, eventually, it was a good time for me. It's never fun to be injured, but I tried to make the best out of it."

Arteta has certainly been impressed by Timber's attitude. Confident but humble, the 23-year-old has all the qualities to become an important voice in the dressing room in the years ahead.

"He is so willing, you can see that in his body language and the way he acts," said the boss yesterday.

"He has worked so hard, I think he is in a really good place at the moment. We are going to have to manage him now in the next few weeks, especially because the load he has been able to do in the last few months compared to the next two weeks is very different, but we are very excited.

"Mentally he is a really tough boy. He has a great environment around him and hopefully, that will make him a better player.

"He is a leader. He loves to be on show and a big presence in everything that we do. He is very vocal and extremely gifted technically. He is a great addition to the team."