Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere has suffered a huge blow ahead of the new campaign and looks set to miss the first two months of the season.

Wilshere missed the Community Shield win over Chelsea at the weekend after suffering a knock in training but manager Arsène Wenger said it would only keep him out for a “matter of days”.

However, the England international has gone for a scan on his ankle and it has been revealed that he has suffered a hairline fracture which, according to the Telegraph, is likely to keep him out of action for 6-8 weeks.

An ankle injury forced Wilshere to miss more than four months last season and this is a huge blow for the player just weeks after his manager said he needs to stay fit. Wenger has unshaken belief in Wilshere’s talent but without regular games he hasn’t been able to find a rhythm to convince everyone that he will still become the player people expected him to be when he burst onto the scene as a teenager.

With so long out, Wilshere could lose his place in the England team as well as falling even further behind Arsenal teammates Aaron Ramsey, Mesut Özil and Santi Cazorla.