Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas believes Theo Walcott's international commitments in the summer hurt his hopes this season.

The 20-year-old believes that Walcott's hectic summer schedule - he represented England at senior and Under-21 level - may have hampered him.

"It has been really bad luck for him since the start of the season probably because of what happened in the summer," Fabregas told arsenal.com.

"He had a lot of games and it has happened to me many, many times. When you play a long tournament in the summer sometimes it is difficult to come back and it has been frustrating for him.

"Maybe [he has been burned out]. He is still very young. When you hear his name it is like he has been playing for a long time but he's still only 20. When you make him play so many games at that age... I've done that before myself and it is difficult and sometimes you get those kinds of injuries.

"Now the most important thing is that he is fit, back, and now he can help us. He looks really good in training and he's very sharp. As soon as he starts getting games and minutes I'm sure he'll play a big part in our season because he's a really important guy for us."