Jurrien Timber marked a dream return from injury by scoring a stunning goal on his first appearance in eight months.

The Dutch defender joined Arsenal in the summer in a £38m move from Ajax. He sustained a serious knee injury on his Premier League debut and has been sidelined ever since.

After undergoing intense rehabilitation, Timber has returned to training with Arsenal and stepped up his recovery with an appearance for the Gunners’ under-21 side against Blackburn. Just eight minutes in, the defender was on the scoresheet.

He picked up the ball on the left flank, turned inside his defender and found the top corner with a brilliant right-footed effort that curled beyond the grasp of the goalkeeper.