Thursday 6 August 2015 16:02, UK
Arsene Wenger has confirmed Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere has suffered a hairline crack to his left fibula and will miss "a few weeks" of the new Premier League season.
Wilshere sustained the injury during an accidental collision in training on Saturday and Wenger initially announced that the problem would only rule the England international out for a matter of days.
But the 23-year-old, who sat out Sunday’s 1-0 Community Shield victory over Chelsea at Wembley, is now facing a longer spell on the sidelines and is also a doubt for England's European Qualifiers with San Marino and Switzerland in September.
“The information you have heard about Jack Wilshere is right,” Wenger told Arsenal's website.
“I had a bad surprise because it is a hairline crack in his fibula that makes him a few weeks out.
“There is minimal damage apart from the bone damage - there is no damage at all apart from that. It was a collision in training and it was all completely accidental.”
The club have also confirmed that Wilshere will continue to be assessed by their medical team as they attempt to fast-track him back to full fitness.
I had a bad surprise because it is a hairline crack in his fibula that makes him a few weeks out
Wilshere has been plagued by a long line of injury problems during his early career and missed five months of last season after sustaining ankle ligament damage in a defeat to Manchester United in November.
This is the fifth year running Wilshere’s campaign has been disrupted by a spell in the treatment room.
Wilshere spent 14 months on the sidelines in 2011 after sustaining a stress fracture of his right ankle in a pre-season friendly with New York Red Bulls.
The severity of the injury also saw him miss the beginning of the 2012/13 season, while a hairline fracture of his left foot ruled him out for six weeks of the following campaign.
A challenge from United defender Paddy McNair led to another season interrupted by injury for Wilshere, who returned only for the remaining six matches of the 2014/15 campaign.
