Aaron Ramsey

Arsene Wenger has taken the blame for Aaron Ramsey's thigh injury which kept him out of action for more than three months in the league.

His departure coincided with a loss of form for the Gunners, who from being top of the table are now striving for fourth spot.

Ramsey's first start in a Premier League fixture against Hull City showed Arsenal fans what they were missing this season, with the Welshman running all over the field in a performance which was a prime example of skill and tenacity.

The midfielder scored one and assisted two in the course of the 90 minutes as the Gunners swept aside Hull City 3-0 in an encouraging dress rehearsal for the FA Cup final.

In the post-match press conference, Wenger revealed that he should have rested Ramsey a bit, failing which had over-exerted him and brought about the injury. The 23-year-old had started in all of Arsenals games till that point and Wenger is looking to take that lesson forward to the next season where he is hoping that his players stay fit in the business end of the period.

"Maybe we overplayed him a little bit. We should have rested him before he was injured," Wenger said.

"Ramsey and Ozil give us a cutting edge in the final third - that makes us look much more dangerous. Football is down to the quality of the players and we could see that today.

"The timing of Ozil's passes, the incisiveness of his passing, makes you turn quickly from defence to offence and that is very important.

"We knew we had to win today. There was much more oil in the engine again. I believe we looked dangerous when we went into their half and took advantage of that.

"If you look at our individual performances all over the pitch, they were good," the Frenchman concluded.