Wilshere Devastated at Euro and Arsenal Blow

Arsenal and England midfielder Jack Wilshere has said he is "gutted and devastated" after it was confirmed he has not only been ruled out of this season's remaining matches but will also miss the 2012 European Championships.

In fact, the 20 year old has not played at all this season and after the Gunners' Monday night 1-2 defeat, at home, to Wigan, the Gunners' boss Arsene Wenger confirmed the youngster would not join the English national team for the showpiece event this summer.

"Jack Wilshere will not play again this season and will not go to the European Championships. That is for sure," Arsenal.com quoted Wenger as saying, "He is not ready to practice today or next week. His ankle is fine and he makes progress, but it is slow progress. We had a chat about that this week. His progress is not quick enough to go to the Euros."

"Jack is devastated. What kept him going was that he felt, even if he could not play with us, he had a good chance of going to Euro 2012. That is over now. But Jack is mentally strong and he is already working hard ahead of next season," the manger added.

Wilshere has established himself as a key player for his club and country in a short span of time and former England manager Fabio Capello identified the midfielder as key to England's Euro 2012 ambitions.

"Gutted, sad, devastated. It's been a test mentally for me this season and it will continue to be tough until I am back out on the pitch. I hope England can do well and bring home the cup. I will be watching and cheering the boys on like a proper England fan," Wilshere tweeted.

The Arsenal man also said he was extremely disappointed he could not feature for the Gunners this season and help the north London club in their fight for a Champions League spot.

"The hardest thing is being away from the game that I love and not being to able to help my teammates get 3rd place. Trying to get fit so I can help the team next season. No holidays, I just want to play and show AFC [Arsenal] fans what I can do," the youngster added.

Wilshere suffered a kick on his ankle while playing for England in a friendly against Switzerland at Wembley in June and aggravated the injury during Arsenal's pre-season match against the New York Red Bulls in the Emirates Cup in July. Since then, the injury and the set-backs suffered on the road to recovery have kept the player away from competitive football.

Wenger also added that Wilshere should not be included in the Great Britain squad for the 2012 London Olympic Games as well.

"The Olympics would be the worst idea for him. When a guy has not played for year, he needs a good and slow preparation to start the season. Once he is fit he can think about the national team. It is not that I don't want him to go to the Olympics. It is just that he has other priorities than that," the Frenchman added.