Stress fracture for King

England defender Ledley King has suffered a stress fracture to his metatarsal.

Ledley King has suffered a stress fracture to his metatarsal which puts the England international in a race against time to be fit for the World Cup.

The defender picked up the injury during Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 victory at Everton on Saturday and was initially ruled out of Monday's meeting with Manchester United.

Reports had claimed that the Spurs captain had broken his ankle, while King was keeping his fingers crossed that it was not a serious injury.

Following scans on the injury, it has been confirmed that King has fractured the fourth metatarsal bone in his left foot.

The severity of the problem means he will miss the remainder of the domestic campaign as Tottenham look to press on with their bid for a place in the UEFA Champions League.

But no decision has been made on King's availability for the World Cup in Germany, which starts on June 9, with Spurs feeling he will be sidelined for a maximum of four weeks.

He could still be fit to be involved in Sven Goran Eriksson's final 23-man squad for the tournament after becoming a regular member of the England setup.

If King is unable to prove his fitness for the World Cup, then it opens the door for the likes of Manchester United defender Wes Brown or Spurs team-mate Michael Carrick to secure a place in the squad.