Gabby Agbonlahor says two Arsenal stars are about to cause Mikel Arteta a ‘problem’

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Gabby Agbonlahor believes Mikel Arteta is set to face a significant problem which he’ll have to solve at Arsenal.

Arteta’s team secured an impressive win in Bilbao against Athletic Club on Tuesday night in the Champions League, with late goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard giving the Gunners all three points.

The North Londoners have now won four of their opening five matches in all competitions this season, conceding just once in these games.

Meanwhile, Arsenal’s squad looks to be in exceptional shape, with several players fighting in each position, although Agbonlahor thinks there could be a downside to this.

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Gabby Agbonlahor says Martin Odegaard and Eberechi Eze are going to cause Mikel Arteta a ‘problem’

Eberechi Eze struggled to influence the game against Athletic Club on Tuesday evening.

The 27-year-old was struck out wide on the touchline, finding it difficult to get on the ball and make things happen.

Eventually hooked for the match-winner Martinelli, it was a night to forget for the former Crystal Palace man.

Arsenal will have to find a way to better use Eze’s talents, and Agbonlahor believes the solution is moving the England international inside into a central role.

However, the ex-Aston Villa striker argued that this could be an issue due to the presence of Martin Odegaard in this attacking midfield position.

“The problem Arteta is going to have is that Odegaard hasn’t done much this season and last night I was looking at Eze, thinking, can we get Eze in the middle?” Agbonlahor said on talkSPORT.

“Martinelli came on and he was outstanding. He might have a situation where he has to pick between Odegaard and Eze. That’s a good headache to have.”

Can Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard play together?

As Agbonlahor noted, this is a positive ‘problem’ for Arteta to have.

It means the Spaniard has a variety of different options and can opt for different combinations depending on who Arsenal are playing.

However, the notion that Eze can’t thrive on the left-wing and in the same team as Odegaard is incredibly premature.

The Gunners merely have to slightly alter how their left forward operates in Arteta’s system. Instead of being stuck to the touchline, Eze should start five yards further infield.

Whoever is deployed at left-back, whether it’s Piero Hincapie, Myles Lewis-Skelly or Riccardo Calafiori, should then be tasked with being more of an overlapping option, rather than inverting inside.

This will allow Eze to flaunt his best attributes.