Arsenal Injury Blow As Attacker Ruled Out Of FA Cup Final But Duo Could Return

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Danny Welbeck will miss Saturday’s FA Cup final but Mikel Arteta and Mathieu Debuchy could be back in contention.

Welbeck has missed our last five games with a knee injury that he suffered in training after our 0-0 draw with Chelsea at the Emirates last month.

There were hopes last week that the 24-year-old may return to full training to put himself in the frame for a place in the squad for this weekend’s Cup final against Aston Villa.

However, Welbeck is still not able to practice and speaking after Sunday’s 4-1 win over West Brom, Wenger confirmed to reporters that the forward won’t be available at Wembley.

“Welbeck will be short because he has not practiced yet.”

It’s a real blow as Welbeck would have been a very useful player to have against Villa and he may now be a doubt to play any part in England’s upcoming international double-header against the Republic of Ireland and Slovenia.

However, there was some positive news on the injury front as the boss also revealed that Mikel Arteta could be back in contention as he’s back in full training after over six months out with calf and ankle injuries.

Wenger continued:

“Arteta is a possibility, because he is back in full training,”

I think it’s highly unlikely Arteta will be considered for a starting spot after spending such a long time on the sidelines but he may force his way onto the bench instead of Mathieu Flamini.

Another player who could make his return this weekend is Mathieu Debuchy as he too has returned to full training after recovering from a hamstring injury.

However, the Frenchman will do well to replace Hector Bellerin at right-back as the youngster has been excellent since coming into the team, so a place on the subs bench may be the best Debuchy can hope for on Saturday.