England blow as Walcott needs surgery on his stomach injury

Arsenal winger Theo Walcott has been ruled out for three weeks because he needs stomach surgery.
Theo WalcottTheo Walcott
Theo Walcott

Walcott was withdrawn from the Arsenal XI to face Stoke last weekend after feeling pain in his stomach, and the Gunners confirmed yesterday that he needs surgery.

Walcott will miss England’s crunch qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland as well as 
Arsenal’s games against West Brom, Swansea and Napoli.

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An Arsenal statement read: “Theo Walcott will have a minor procedure on his abdomen in Germany on Wednesday which will keep him out of action until after the next international break.”

Walcott’s injury is a blow for 
Arsenal, who have come to rely on the winger even more this season in the absence of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger hopes to have the 24-year-old back for the game against Norwich on October 19, however.

Wenger said: “Theo will be out for a few weeks. He has developed some damage to his posterior abdominal wall. It’s not a hernia, but it’s a little structural problem in his abdomen.

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“He will have the procedure in Germany on Wednesday and, because it’s so minor, we can begin his rehab immediately. We are pleased it’s being dealt with quickly and he shouldn’t miss too many Arsenal matches. But he will miss the forthcoming international matches with England.”

Walcott’s injury is arguably of bigger importance to England.

He has become an instrumental part of Roy Hodgson’s starting XI of late, starting the last five games for the Three Lions. England need to win their final two qualifiers against Montenegro and Poland next month to guarantee qualification for Rio 2014.

With three games coming up in seven days, Wenger is likely to give his youngsters and fringe players a run out at West Brom in the Capital One Cup tonight.

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Nicklas Bendtner, Emiliano Viviano and Ryo Miyaichi are likely to feature.

There could also be a first start of the season for Mikel Arteta, who came off the substitutes’ bench against Stoke following his recovery from a thigh injury.