Henry's injury offers Reyes perfect chance to shine on the grand stage

From the way he has performed and what he has said over the last six months, it has been all too obvious that Jose Antonio Reyes is not head over heels in love with the way that football is played in England. And when he assembles the different elements that he likes least about this country's game, the picture that emerges might resemble something approaching the profile of Blackburn Rovers.

From the way he has performed and what he has said over the last six months, it has been all too obvious that Jose Antonio Reyes is not head over heels in love with the way that football is played in England. And when he assembles the different elements that he likes least about this country's game, the picture that emerges might resemble something approaching the profile of Blackburn Rovers.

Physical, defensive and very hard on any creative player who allows himself to be intimidated, Mark Hughes' side will have been most interested in the news that Thierry Henry has not recovered from a groin problem.

Taking his place in the Arsenal attack for today's FA Cup semi-final will be Reyes, who will have no better opportunity to prove his own durability than against a team whose instincts have been made keener by a successful fight against relegation in the Premiership's toughest neighbourhood.

If the Neville brothers' ambush of the Arsenal winger at Old Trafford in October made you shudder then it may be time to look away if Reyes, 21, lingers too long in possession with Blackburn's enforcer Aaron Mokoena lurking. With his preference for physical power, and perhaps some advice from Sir Alex Ferguson, it seems impossible that Hughes will not choose to put pressure on Arsenal's callow winger.

"He has to come to terms with it," Arsenal's Lauren said yesterday; "he's a man." How much so Arsenal are likely to find out against the same team that took only 12 minutes to break Arjen Robben's foot in February.

While Lauren, the Cameroon full-back, will need no protection, an Arsenal side without Henry, who could also miss Wednesday's visit to Chelsea, and Sol Campbell can scarcely afford Reyes to allow himself to be marginalised in a match of such importance.

Arsène Wenger has accepted that after a disappointing season for the Spain international, securing Reyes' long-term future is a battle that he still has to win. He said yesterday that the best recommendation he could give the winger was that foreign players who had left the English game behind had told him in subsequent years that they had missed its intensity.

"It looked to me for a while that the word had gone around England that you had to kick Arsenal," Wenger said. "Reyes was one of the players who could make a difference and that is why he was a target. He has got over that. With Thierry absent the semi-final is a good opportunity for Jose to show he can do it.

"We have intensity in training that is comparable to the games. But I feel Reyes was a target at some stage in England. I don't think he suffered from the fact he is kicked but it took him some time to get over it. It will be an intense game because Blackburn have stabilised defensively and are difficult to beat now.

"It can help to convince Jose [to stay]. He gets there slowly. It takes you time to adapt to the intensity of the game in England but I am convinced once you move out of that you miss it.

"Those are the vibes I get from all the players who leave England. I remember when [Emmanuel] Petit and [Marc] Overmars left, when I spoke to them three or four years later they said they missed the intense, passionate games you get in England every week."

The loss of Henry for what Wenger described as either "days or weeks" is a blow but it is hardly a surprise that the French striker has developed the problem after the 48 games he has played this season for club and country. When Reyes' indifferent form is taken into consideration, there has been no option but to play Henry and there will be precious little extra money for new signings, Wenger said, unless Arsenal discover "oil under the training ground".

The anticipation ahead of Arsenal's fifth consecutive FA Cup semi-final, equalling a record set by Manchester United in the 1960s, and the reclaiming of second place in the Premiership meant that a little of the gloom has lifted at Highbury.

Wenger talked about the prospect of Chelsea's Champions' League semi-final with Liverpool - "it's terrible that they're playing each other. When we played Chelsea last season, I never felt we were in Europe" - with part of him already thinking of Wednesday's game.

Chelsea's victory away at Blackburn in February came to define the way in which they have tightened their grip on the Premiership; they won the physical contest and left the pitch shirtless, like a troupe of bare-knuckle fighters.

The image may sit uncomfortably with a team of Arsenal's finesse but there will be no better preparation for Wednesday at Stamford Bridge than a similarly resilient display today - for Reyes in particular.