World Cup hopeful Barkley faces layoff with broken toe

The Premier League club said in a statement that the 20-year-old had suffered a "small fracture" in the FA Cup third-round victory over Queens Park Rangers on January 4 but did not explain how long he would be out of action.

(Reuters)

The BBC suggested he might be out for six weeks but other media reports said he could return as soon as January 28 for the local derby with Liverpool.

Barkley has made his breakthrough with Everton and England this season, scoring four times for the Goodison Park club and winning his first three international caps to push his way into the reckoning for a place in Roy Hodgson's World Cup squad.

(Writing by Stephen Wood; editing by Tony Jimenez) nL6N0KO2F8