Welbeck out of FA Cup final and England matches

Danny Welbeck has been ruled out of the FA Cup final and the Arsenal forward will also play no part in England’s matches against Republic of Ireland and Slovenia next month.

Welbeck has been sidelined since the goalless Premier League draw with Chelsea last month due to a knee injury.

The former Manchester United man was rated as doubtful for Saturday’s showpiece at Wembley and manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed that the 24-year-old is still not fit.

Wenger said in a press conference on Wednesday: “Welbeck will not be fit for Arsenal or England. That’s the only injury.

“I was confident that he would be available but his bone bruising was not healed.”

There is more positive news on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mathieu Debuchy, who are available for the Cup holders against Tim Sherwood’s side after recovering from groin and hamstring injuries respectively.

Villa beat Liverpool in the semi-finals and Wenger knows it will not be easy to lift the famous trophy for a second consecutive season given the impact Sherwood has made since replacing Paul Lambert.

“Villa are a good side and a strong team. They had a great semi-final and are strong opponents,” added the Frenchman.

“He has done well to lift their confidence. They are positive so he has done a very good job.”