The chances of David Beckham being fit in time for the World Cup are still no clearer tonight, after orthopaedic experts spent the day disagreeing over how long the England captain's broken foot is likely to keep him out.

Most experts believe that Beckham, who has fractured his second metatarsal bone - a small, thin piece of bone adjoining the second toe in his left foot - is likely to be out for at least six to ten weeks; with four to six weeks needed for the bone to heal, and a further two to four weeks needed for rehabilitation. Such a time-scale would make recovery in time for England's first match against Sweden on June 2 very unlikely.

However, according to a report in the Manchester Evening News, Beckham is hoping to emulate the recovery of his team-mate Ryan Giggs, who was out for only for 36 days after breaking a metatarsal bone in his foot in October 1998.

Such a rapid return could see Beckham squeeze back for the Champions League final at Hampden Park final in 34 days' time, if United overcome Bayer Leverkusen this month.

However, England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson, who spoke to Beckham last night, thinks the World Cup is a more likely goal.

"This is a real blow for David personally, for Manchester United and for England," said Eriksson. "But there is nothing we can do about it. All we can do at this stage is wait and hope that David Beckham is fit both for Manchester United and for England as soon as possible."

The United midfielder was driven to Old Trafford this morning by team-mate Dwight Yorke. Wearing a woolly hat and with crutches by his side, the 26-year-old shielded his face from waiting reporters and photographers as he entered the Old Trafford complex to begin his rehabilitation.

According to professor Tom Reilly, director of research at the Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences at John Moores University, that recovery is likely to take six weeks.

"The first metatarsal would probably be more difficult to heal because players do most of their kicking with that one," he said. "The second metatarsal would be bad news for a runner and it is involved in weight bearing.

"If you run it takes a lot of load, but for a footballer the first metatarsal is definitely the worst."

Professor Reilly said that Beckham should make a speedy recovery because of his high levels of fitness.

"I think the prognosis would be six to eight weeks," he added. "I would guess that he has got an advantage in that aerobically he's very fit. That will greatly help his rehabilitation. I expect he will also do non-weight bearing exercises in the cast, including deep-water running."

If Beckham recovers in six weeks he would have a little time to regain match fitness before England's World Cup opener against Sweden in Saitama on June 2.

However, if it is eight weeks - as United maintain it could be - then Beckham would miss the Sweden match and almost certainly the clash with Argentina in Sapporo on June 7.

He might however be ready in time for England's third Group F game against Nigeria in Osaka on June 12.

Earlier, Beckham's father Ted had revealed his son's distress, telling GMTV that his son was "devastated at the news".

"He was very, very upset and he said he was in a lot of pain and that he was in plaster," he said. "He said he was more upset because of what games were coming up."

"I really feel sorry for him. It's a terrible thing to have happened. But, fingers crossed, he'll be OK."

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who came on for Beckham last night and scored twice as United advanced to the Champions League semi-final, described Beckham's injury as a "massive blow".

"I was delighted with the goals, but really disappointed for Becks, for England and for United," he said.

"It's a massive blow because he has maybe been our best player. He has been scoring goals and making goals for everyone else. I hope he heals quickly.

"You can say we can win it for him, but we still have two hard matches against Leverkusen."

Solskjaer's strike partner, Ruud van Nistelrooy, also sympathised with Beckham. Van Nistelrooy knows what it is like to miss a big tournament through injury and he sat out the Euro 2000 finals with Holland when he damaged his cruciate ligaments.

He said: "It's a shame for David Beckham and I hope he is well soon. It's a great disappointment for our team and I hope he is fine soon."