West Ham’s Jack Wilshere suffers new injury setback as ankle flares up after surgery – leaving Hammers unsure when he will return
Midfielder's fitness problems have not let up since his summer switch from Arsenal, with Manuel Pellegrini admitting he needs longer than the projected six weeks to recover
UNLUCKY Jack Wilshere has suffered another injury setback as he recovers from ankle surgery.
The 26-year-old has not played since the 1-0 home defeat to Wolves on September 1.
He had initially faced a possible six-week layoff for the minor procedure, which involved removing a loose screw from his ankle.
However, the midfielder has since experienced inflammation in the troublesome ankle.
Hammers chief Manuel Pellegrini said: “Jack felt some pain over the last two days here so he needs more time to recover.”
West Ham are reluctant to place a timeframe on his recovery but SunSport understands it has added at least another week to his absence.
This could potentially rule him out until the next international break in mid-November, which would mean missing another four Prem games.
Wilshere, whose career has been plagued with injuries, signed a three-year deal in the summer and started the club’s first four games of the season.
West Ham face London rivals Tottenham in the Premier League tomorrow.
Pellegrini admits striker Andy Carroll should return to full training over the next two weeks as he battles back from a recurring ankle problem.
The Chilean said: “Andy is recovering. He started this week working, part of the warm up with the whole squad so we will see in the next week how he improves.
“I hope that maximum 15 days he will at least be working with the squad, completely.”
Pellegrini is confident Austrian forward Marko Arnautovic will be ready for the London derby.
Arnautovic played against Northern Ireland in the Uefa Nations League last week but has to be extra careful by not training too intensively.
He said: “Marko is OK, he worked when he returned from the squad, he played just one game.
“He worked with the squad without any problems, he must be careful with his knee but it allows for him to play games.”