Arsenal suffered a major blow when French striker Thierry Henry was
ruled out of Saturday's FA Cup final against Manchester United.
Henry, the Premier League's top scorer, had suffered a recurrence of a
long-standing Achilles problem, the club said on Monday.
Henry did not feature in Arsenal's final league game against Birmingham
City on Sunday which they lost 2-1.
He had played 45 minutes in midweek after returning from a groin injury in the 7-0 thrashing of
Everton.
Henry, scorer of 25 league goals, has had an exhausting season. He
played every first team game for Arsenal -- excluding the League Cup --
until January when he was rested for the FA Cup third round match with
Stoke City.
Arsenal have played in three of the last four FA Cup finals but Henry
is yet to score in the showpiece occasion.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is likely to play Jose Antonio Reyes up
front in Cardiff with either Dennis Bergkamp or fellow Dutchman Robin van
Persie.
The Cup final is the last chance for Arsenal and United to win a major
trophy after Chelsea won the league title and the League Cup.
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-05-17 14:24
