Owen out with ACL tear

Michael Owen's injury in the first few minutes of yesterday's game with Sweden is a tear to the right anterior cruciate ligament; he'll be out for several months. He's had a bad time with injuries lately:

Owen said he was "clearly sorry" to leave Germany, but was convinced England would be a success.

"I'll be following all the matches very closely and giving them my full support, hopefully all the way to Berlin," he said. "My main objective is now to get fit as quickly as possible for Newcastle United."

The 26-year-old Owen, who broke a bone in his right foot on Dec. 31, only returned last month. He had been replaced in both of England's World Cup games before Tuesday.

"Michael has had terrible luck with injuries since Christmas," England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said. "I feel very sorry for him to miss out on the rest of the World Cup — it's a blow to him and a big loss for the team.

England is looking a bit light on strikers now, having only brought four to begin with. Crouch has been somewhat disappointing in his appearances so far, and Rooney is still recovering from injury. The remaining player is Theo Walcott, who is both very young and has not had much playing experience at the top level. This might be a great opportunity for him to grow into the role, or it might overwhelm him. Obviously, I'm hoping he'll be able to do the job and become a quality striker at the international level!