Tour de France winner Chris Froome has been forced to pull out of the Vuelta a Espana with a broken foot.

The 30-year-old Team Sky rider was injured in a crash on Wednesday, surrendering more than seven minutes to his rivals.

"Scans this morning confirm fractured navicular. End of the Vuelta for me @lavuelta #LV2015," he tweeted, accompanied by a disappointed emoji.

The issue brings an end to Froome's bid to become only the third rider to win a Tour de France-Vuelta double.

Astana's Fabio Aru heads the general classification, with a 27-second lead over Joaquim Rodriguez of Team Katusha.