Alex Iwobi says he’s been told by Arsene Wenger that he’ll have to work on the defensive side of his game if he’s to win back a regular starting berth at the Emirates.

The Nigeria international has made eight appearances so far this season, including one particularly noteworthy performance away at Chelsea, and hopes he’ll get the call up for this weekend’s challenging trip to table-toppers Manchester City.

“The boss always says that for me to earn my spot back, I need to work defensively and add goals and assists to my game, which I’ve been trying to do,” he told Arsenal.com.

“I’ve been working on that, especially in pre-season. It’s something I have to add to my game to improve it in the long run.

“Everyone [helps] really. If Sead or Hector are behind me, they’ll tell me when to go forward, when to come back.

“They speak to me and tell me where to be. Steve Bould has helped me tactically too.”

Arsenal have lost only one of their last nine games against Manchester City, a 2-1 defeat in December last year, but know they face a tough task on Sunday against a side that hasn’t been defeated since the Gunners knocked them out of the FA Cup at the semi-final stage last April.