Robin van Persie could be back for Arsenal by early April, according to the Holland coach, Bert van Marwijk. However, his club believe the 26-year-old will return from an ankle injury at the end of April rather than the start, and even that will only happen if his rehabilitation goes to exactly to plan.
Either outcome would please Arsène Wenger, as the Arsenal manager feared Van Persie would be out for the season after his injury in November.
"I spoke to him on the phone last week and he is improving all the time and feeling better," Van Marwijk said. "You can hear it in his voice, that he feels he is improving. I hope that he will play at the beginning of April and he feels this may be possible."
Van Marwijk will be closely monitoring Van Persie's progress ahead of the World Cup this summer: "He is a very important player for me so it is very important that he is fit."
Arsenal's physios will travel to the Netherlands in the coming weeks to check on Van Persie's progress. Despite struggling in his absence, the club still retain hopes of winning the Premier League – they lie six points behind the leaders, Chelsea – but Wenger insists Arsenal should not be ashamed by their efforts this season, whatever the outcome of the title race.
Manchester United moved back to within a point of Chelsea following a 3-0 win over West Ham last night, albeit having played a match more. And, while Wenger's youngsters have come up short in their clashes against the top two this season, the remaining fixtures appear to be kind to the Gunners.
Wenger – whose side trail Porto 2-1 from the first leg of their Champions League clash last week – maintains that, given Arsenal's relatively small investment, to still be in the hunt for the top prizes is an achievement in itself.
"There are three clubs in the fight for the championship – when you see how much money the others have invested, we have not to be ashamed," Wenger said in the March edition of the official Arsenal magazine.
"There are two main trophies in our job: the Champions League and the Premier League; today, we can still win them both. In addition, the club is in a healthy situation and we have a fantastic young side.
"If that is still not enough, I can understand, but we are fighting very hard to deliver. I believe that Arsenal fans can be very proud of their club, and that is at least what we try to give them – pride."
