Quinten Timber has still not recovered from his knee injury. The Feyenoord midfielder seemed to have recovered in time to be able to participate during the preparation of the Dutch team for the European Championship, but that turned out not to be the case. Now that the European Championship is nearing its conclusion, Timber has still not recovered.

“How does it go away? Time and rest,” Timber shares an update in the new episode of Matchday. Timber says he is struggling with a 'very vague injury'. Damage to his inner tube and fluid behind his knee are preventing him from making a comeback for the time being.

“It happened during training at Feyenoord, one of the last actions,” Timber looks back. “Four against four, I was winning. I didn't play the last matches at Feyenoord either. My focus was already on the European Championship. In two weeks I will be fit and I can train again and then you go to the European ChampionshipsI thought then.”

It didn't get that far. Timber didn't recover in time to be included in the final selection of the Dutch national team, which is now in the semi-finals. Timber was asked a lot about his fitness, when there were big question marks about to what extent he would be ready to be available at the European Championship.

“Normally I don't care and I just have to laugh,” Timber says, referring to what he claims is incorrect information from the media about his injury. “Now everyone started texting me. I find it annoying when they text me for my birthday, let alone something like that. They all asked what was wrong. I had my injury and was supposed to participate in the last training with the Dutch national team, but that didn't work out. My knee wasn't good enough.”

Timber states that he had a 'very long' conversation with national coach Ronald Koeman. “He said to me: 'You would be there, but you are not fit enough and you don't know when you will be fit. I didn't know myself either, but I wanted it so badly, so I told him that I would do everything I could to be fit before June 1. But he couldn't trust it.”

“He also said: Frenkie is not yet one hundred percent, if he is not fit and you are at that moment, I want to take you with me. I continued training during that time and when I was apped, I was still not fit. Then they said 'no', and that's it really. It's the European Championship, I wanted to force it. But it didn't work, unfortunately.”

“It was easy to accept because of my faith. It just had to be that way. I've been fit all season, I've been going strong and doing my thing. Now I have a crazy injury, which means I'm not there. It just has to be that way, so I just accept it. I also have the World Cup on my mind now. There are a lot of blessings been this year. The European Championship is not included, but I am grateful.”

Timber's brother Jurriën also struggled with a knee injury for much of last season. The Arsenal player recovered just before the end of the season, but not in time to convince Koeman to take him to the European Championship.

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