Gunners wait on Walcott news

England’s medical staff will assess Theo Walcott this morning before deciding when the youngster can fly back to Arsenal.

Walcott dislocated his shoulder in training last night, ruling him out of tonight’s friendly with Germany in Berlin.

It is likely that Walcott will be out for quite a while, but first he needs to be examined by the Gunners, who must wait to discover what advice the Football Association come up with.

Whenever the 19-year-old returns, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is unlikely to be amused.

Along with Alex Ferguson, Rafael Benitez and recent addition Martin O’Neill, Wenger has never made any secret of his belief friendly internationals are a meaningless inclusion in a packed club scene.

And in the immediate aftermath of his side’s defeat by Aston Villa on Saturday, he again outlined his opposition to this week’s matches.

“It is particularly not welcome at the moment because it is at a period where you want your players to recover a little bit,” he said.

“I don’t see what you gain from this friendly because there is no game. You can explain a friendly to prepare for an official match but after this there is no international game for four months.”

And, as he digests the news seeping out of the German capital, Wenger will know Arsenal are the ones who will suffer most from Walcott’s unfortunate accident.

With eight major stars missing already, the loss of Walcott is just another name added to that list.

His absence gives someone else, probably Shaun Wright-Phillips, an opportunity to excel in a makeshift England team, with coach Fabio Capello knowing Walcott will be fully fit again before England resume their World Cup qualifying campaign against the Ukraine on April 1.

For Wenger, the consequences are much more immediate and far-reaching.

Last season, Derby midfielder Stephen Pearson was ruled out for a month after suffering the same injury.

Even if Walcott equalled that timescale, he would miss four league games and the rest of Arsenal’s Champions League group campaign.

That would include key visits to Manchester City and Chelsea, with Liverpool due at the Emirates on December 21, while Arsenal’s place in the Champions League knock-out phase is by no means secure even though they currently top Group G.

Wenger’s opinion is not hard to guess and the fall-out could be explosive even if Capello was keen to stress his sorrow at the freak accident.

“Our priority is Theo and making him as comfortable as possible before he returns to England,” said the Italian.

“We are all very disappointed but the important thing is for Theo to travel home and make a quick recovery.”