Sir Elton John, Appendicitis, Ticking Time Bomb

Sir Elton John has said he is "lucky to be alive" after being diagnosed with appendicitis.

The singer told The Sun Reporter he had performed 10 concerts in "agony" on his European tour before he called in doctors.

"I was a ticking time bomb. I guess I could have died at any time," he said.

According to his website, he is on a course of "intensive antibiotics" and is expected to undergo surgery "in the coming weeks".

Sir Elton has had to postpone a series of summer festival dates including shows in Italy, Germany and London's Hyde Park this week.

A spokesman said the diagnosis had been made "following a number of exploratory scans and blood tests with his medical team in the UK".

He confirmed the singer would not return to touring until he had fully recovered from both the planned surgery and any damage caused by the appendix abscess.

"Elton is incredibly disappointed to postpone these tour dates," he said.

"To know that he made such super-human efforts and continued to perform to thousands through his illness only confirms his dedication to his European fans.

"He is eager to be back on top form and return to play the remaining shows starting in early September 2013."

Sir Elton had been due to perform at the Collisioni festival in Italy on Tuesday, with further shows in Germany on Thursday and a headline gig at London's Hyde Park on Friday.

British Summer Time festival organisers AEG Live said the Hyde Park show would still go ahead with Elvis Costello and former Kinks frontman Ray Davies on the bill, with existing ticket holders receiving a full refund.

Other July dates now scrapped include festivals in Spain, France and Monaco.

Sir Elton is due back in the UK in September, performing at the First Direct Arena in Leeds and at Bestival before heading back to Las Vegas for a month-long residency at The Colosseum.

£25m If Fabregas Join Arsenal Again?

Arsenal are manoeuvring themselves into a position to bring Cesc Fabregas back to north London this summer.

The former Gunners skipper is currently on his summer holidays following Spain's Confederations Cup campaign and is pondering his future after a frustrating season at Barcelona.

Publicly, the Spaniard maintains he wants to stay at the Nou Camp, but doubts over how he fits into manager Tito Vilanova's plans after being regularly overlooked for big games last season has left Fabregas in two minds.

And the Gunners are poised to strike should the midfielder decide his future lies elsewhere with the Emirates Stadium club being kept updated on developments regarding the 26-year-old's future as the summer progresses.

A deal to re-sign Fabregas will be relatively straightforward to conclude. As part of the deal that took Fabregas back to Spain, Arsenal secured a £25million first-option clause as part of the transfer.

Should Barca decide to sell Fabregas, the Gunners would have first refusal on the midfielder at a fixed price of £25million.

 Even if Fabregas decides he wants to return to London, Barca will be hesitant to let him leave given the work the Catalan club put in to bringing him back to Spain - but Arsenal will be at the front of the queue should that eventuality occur.

Meanwhile, the Gunners are stepping up their interest in Swansea defender Ashley Williams following Thomas Vermaelen's back injury.

The Wales international is a key target for Arsene Wenger this summer, but Arsenal have baulked at the central-defender's £10million asking price.

But as Sportsmail revealed on Tuesday, captain Vermaelen is likely to miss the start of the season due to the recurrence of a lower back problem, leaving the Gunners with just two fit senior centre-halves; Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker.

Vermaelen will not travel with the rest of the squad to the Far East on Thursday, instead staying behind to continue with his rehabilitation.

It is not yet clear how long the Belgium international will spend on the sidelines, with the next seven days understood to be critical in diagnosing the full extent of the problem.

It is feared the defender could miss up to three months if his problem does not respond well to treatment.