Newcastle United striker Michael Owen will have an operation on the broken bone in his right foot.

The England international picked up the injury against Tottenham in Saturday's 2-0 defeat at White Hart Lane.

However, he insists he will be ready for the World Cup this summer.

The 26-year-old England, who broke his fifth metatarsal, could be out for ''several months'', according to Magpies boss Graeme Souness.

Owen said: ''It's disappointing but everyone gets their fair share, if there's any consolation I've got plenty of time before the World Cup.''

When asked if the injury would affect his World Cup, Owen replied: ''Not from what all the experts are telling me.

''There are no quick ways, it's two and a half months or three months, I don't know what it is but it's the same for everyone. Loads of people have had it done - (Wayne) Rooney, (David) Beckham, Gary Neville and Stevie Gerrard.''

England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson will monitor Owen's recovery.

He said: ''Obviously I'm very disappointed for Michael. It's very bad luck for him and for Newcastle United.

''Michael is a fantastic striker and a very important player for his club and for England.

''I hope he returns to fitness as soon as possible and I will follow his progress very closely.''

Souness said: ''Michael Owen has broken his fifth metatarsal in his right foot. He's had it X-rayed here (at White Hart Lane) and he will obviously be out for several months now.

''It's a similar injury to David Beckham's. It's an almighty blow for us.

''Even when you're not playing particularly well, you feel that you can win games with Michael in your team. I can't tell you how big a miss he will be.

''It's an absolute disaster for him and for us.''

Beckham recovered from his similar injury in 2002 and played in the World Cup, although he was not fully fit and appeared to be less effective.

If Owen was ruled out of any England games, Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch would be in contention to replace him alongside Wayne Rooney, but none of them can rival his experience or goalscoring potential.

Eriksson, meanwhile, has declared himself open to the idea of playing Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard alongside a holding midfielder - if he can find a player suitable for the job.

Time is running out for the England manager before he finalises his World Cup squad, and few places remain available in what is a largely settled squad.

But Eriksson has admitted it is not too late to impress him, and he also recognises England could benefit from taking a no-nonsense midfield tackler with them to Germany.

Ledley King was already been tried out in midfield, coping well against Argentina, but he is primarily a defender.

Eriksson is keeping his options open but is adamant Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard can dovetail together in his midfield.

''They can do it - of course they can do it,'' he said.

''But if we want to have one sitting midfielder then we have to find one. It's one area which we are going to look at.''

Eriksson's admission that he needs to ''find'' such a player suggests he is ready to look outside the current squad, with Newcastle's Scott Parker a leading contender