Arsenal have this evening confirmed Theo Walcott has been sidelined for the rest of the season with a knee injury sustained in Saturday evening’s cup clash with Tottenham.

The winger was stretchered off towards the end of the 2-0 win and underwent scans on the problem earlier today. The Gunners issued the following update on their official website:

“After coming off injured in Saturday’s 2-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur, the Club regrettably announces that Theo Walcott has sustained a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee. Theo will have surgery in London in the near future and is expected to be out for at least six months, therefore missing the remainder of the season and the World Cup in Brazil in the summer. Everyone at Arsenal wishes Theo a speedy recovery and we look forward to seeing him back on a football pitch as soon as possible.”

The news is a massive blow to Arsenal’s title aspirations and Fantasy managers alike. Ironically, Walcott’s Fantasy potential looked to have stepped up a notch at the weekend, too – Arsene Wenger chose to field him as the lone striker in the north London derby, with Olivier Giroud sidelined through illness and Nicklas Bendtner out with an ankle injury.

Having returned from abdominal surgery in late November, Walcott was tentatively eased back into the first-team and produced a pair of assists over four sub appearances. From Gameweek 16 onwards, though, he racked up 47 points over just five starts, with doubles against City and West Ham followed by an assist against Newcastle and goal at home to Cardiff.

The bandwagon was at full pace, with almost 120,000 FPL managers snapping up his services prior to the last two deadlines, as Walcott’s price leapt from 9.1 to 9.6. Indeed, over 50,000 have already transferred the winger in this week alone.

From a Fantasy perspective, today’s news may even prove the tipping point for those who have so far resisted the temptation of playing the winter wildcard early. Walcott’s absence will have a significant effect on many a Fantasy plan, forcing us back to the drawing board for yet another revision.

With games against Villa, Fulham, Southampton and Palace in the next four, Arsenal’s upcoming schedule bodes well for Fantasy returns and is likely to see many turn to Mesut Ozil, with Santi Cazorla also a potential target until Aaron Ramsey returns from a thigh injury. The German has plummeted in price from 10.8 down to 9.9 yet has averaged an impressive 6.3 points per game – joint-top for midfielders – and looks the prime target for current Walcott owners looking to take advantage of those fixtures.

Alternatively, for those unwilling to opt for Yaya Toure as a route into City’s goal potential, now may be the time to turn to David Silva. The pair have mirrored Ozil’s 6.3 ppg but the Spaniard, with an ownership of just 5% and price of 9.3 to his team-mate’s 10.1, may well be the ideal trade.