Oxlade-Chamberlain desperate to make FA Cup final

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain hopes to impress Arsene Wenger in training this week and earn a place in Arsenal’s FA Cup final squad.

The England international has been sidelined with hamstring and groin injuries in 2015, restricting him to just eight appearances since the turn of the year.

Wenger was able to introduce him for the final 13 minutes of Sunday’s final game of the Premier League season against West Brom – a game Arsenal won 4-1 – and Oxlade-Chamberlain hopes to build on that ahead of the cup final with Aston Villa on Saturday.

“I don’t know [if I’ll make the cup final],” he told the Daily Mirror. “I hope that I’ll be fit and I’ll be available but it will be up to the manager to decide if he thinks I’m fit and I’m ready.

“I did feel [this season] was my best campaign. Game time is obviously a plus – I felt like I was getting my fair share of that and I felt strong. For the first time I was an important part of the team.

“When you’re a young lad in a team like Arsenal you feel like, of course, you deserve to be at the club… but you’re on the periphery and there are world class players and more experienced players around you.

“[This season] especially, I felt like I found my own role in the team that was important to our team.

“All I can do in training is prove my worth and show that I’m ready.”