Robin van Persie will fly to Serbia today for radical treatment on his ankle injury, which involves being massaged using fluid from a human placenta.

The Dutch FA has arranged for Van Persie to visit a specialist on the recommendation of Danko Lazovic, PSV Eindhoven’s Serbia striker, before returning for further treatment at Arsenal.

The North London club confirmed yesterday that Van Persie will be out for at least six weeks after rupturing ligaments in his right ankle in the 0-0 draw with Italy on Saturday, but the 26-year-old forward is hoping that if the unusual massage treatment works, he could return even sooner.

Lazovic was out for just one month after suffering a similar ankle injury last season, which has led Van Persie to believe that he could be back before Christmas.

“I will meet with a female doctor who helped Danko Lazovic,” Van Persie said. “She is vague about her methods, but I know she massages you using fluid from a placenta.

“I am going to try. It cannot hurt and if it helps, it helps. I have been in contact with Arsenal physiotherapists and they have let me do it.”

Van Persie seems certain to miss Arsenal’s forthcoming Barclays Premier League matches against Chelsea and Liverpool on November 29 and December 13 respectively. However, their other fixtures for the next few weeks are less than daunting and the player accepts that he could have suffered a far worse injury.

“A scan showed that my ankle ligament was almost completely torn off where [Giorgio] Chiellini caught me, but it was not intentional,” Van Persie said. “I was lucky, it could be worse.”

Van Persie’s absence will increase the pressure on Eduardo da Silva to deliver on a regular basis after a familiar stop-start opening to the campaign, with Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager, planning to start the Croatia striker up front in the match away to Sunderland on Saturday.

Eduardo has started just three Premier League games this season, but after suffering from several minor niggles in recent months, he is now fit and will be asked to fill in for Van Persie, with Nicklas Bendtner also ruled out after having groin surgery.

Eduardo is confident of regaining his best form after an horrendous miss in last month’s 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur. “Against Tottenham I missed one big chance in particular, when I was one-on-one with the goalkeeper,” he said. “Maybe I had too much time to think.

“But I will not worry about that chance, I feel strong in my head. It is good that I was in the position to have the chance because, if you keep doing that, then the goals will come.”

Abou Diaby has pulled out of the second leg of France’s World Cup play-off against Ireland tomorrow with a calf injury.