Gunners have edge despite injuries, claims Cole

Arsenal will be without Thierry Henry for the FA Cup final and are also sweating on their fitness of Jose Antonio Reyes.

But they will have form on their side at the Millennium Stadium, according to full-back Ashley Cole.

The Gunners yesterday confirmed that French striker Henry would not be available for the trip to Cardiff after he suffered a recurrence of an old Achilles injury during the 7-0 demolition of Everton, in which he had just returned from a groin problem.

Boss Arsene Wenger will, though, delay a decision on whether to risk Reyes against Manchester United on Saturday until the last possible moment as the Spanish forward recovers from a thigh injury which kept him out of the defeat at Birmingham last weekend.

Despite that 2-1 reverse, when Dennis Bergkamp and Robin van Persie led the Arsenal attack, Cole firmly believes the Gunners are the form team of the two finalists.

“Both teams are going to want to win something and not go empty handed over the whole season, but I think we have got the upper hand with the way that we are playing,” the England full-back declared.

“We are playing really well and the lads are confident.”

Arsenal’s only other defeat from their final 14 Premiership matches came against United on February 1, when they went down 4-2 at Highbury.

Cole, however, feels that result will in fact work in favour of the London side, who finished six points clear of the Red Devils when claiming second place in the league.

He added on ArsenalPLUS at the club’s official website, www.arsenal.com: “They have beaten us three times, but hopefully we can use that against them and beat them in the important one and pick up that trophy because it is important to us as a club to win something.”

The Arsenal defender denies the FA Cup would be seen as merely a consolation prize. “If you ask any of the players, they all want to win it. It is a great cup to be in and we have always had a full squad nearly in every game because the manager wants to win it,” he said.

“The bigger the pitch, the more we can play, pass and move, so we are looking forward to it and it will be a great day.”

Arsenal’s preparations for the cup final have, meanwhile, also been overshadowed by the continuing investigation into Chelsea’s alleged ‘tapping-up’ of Cole, with the inquiry set to conclude tomorrow.

In spite of all the attention on the Arsenal defender, the 24-year-old is training normally with the club this week and will take part in Saturday’s showpiece match.

Henry, meanwhile, has backed his team-mates to lift the FA Cup.

“This is the biggest match I have missed in my career. It’s a major disappointment – but the team can still win,” Henry declared.

“I have had a problem with my Achilles since the start of the season. But it’s not just one – both of them are causing me pain and I am just not fit to play. I need a rest.

“It is a big disappointment as it will be a great game against Manchester United, but I have to put the team ahead of myself.

“I had a talk with Arsene. Sometimes you have to be honest – I won’t make it against United.”