Wilshere and Walcott pose FA Cup final selection problem for Arsenal

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has a welcome selection headache for the FA Cup final.

Wenger hinted that England internationals Theo Walcott and Jack Wilshere will play a big role at Wembley against Aston Villa, and also next season, but was not prepared to confirm their places in his first-choice XI.

"You cannot explain to 10 players individually that they do not start," Wenger said.

"You have to make your decisions and the whole squad has to focus on doing it because most of the time the heroes are the guys who come on.

"I want Walcott to play through the middle and I want both of them to stay here.

"He has not played since November, Jack. That is five months, six months.

"We always stood by him in every difficult moment. Does that mean we want him to stay here for a longer period? Yes, we would like to benefit from his talent now.

"Walcott is similar. He has been out for a year (with a knee injury). You want them to stay."

Walcott, who scored a hat-trick in last weekend's Premier League-concluding defeat of West Brom, and Wenger are in agreement that the 26-year-old's future lies as a central striker.

"The quality of his runs and his finishing is top class," Wenger said.

"He can play on the flank, he can play through the middle. But I think in future he will play more through the middle."

Wenger will hope there is no "nightmare" start for Arsenal this time after last year conceding twice in the opening eight minutes before rallying against Hull.

"All the fans came full of hope and after 10 minutes we are 2-0 down," he said.

"With the pressure on it was really a nightmare. (But) I was ready to fight until the end.

"We have learnt a lot from last season and let's show that on Saturday."