Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott happy to give Arsene Wenger 'a headache' in search of Arsenal first-team spot

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Alex Young @alexwsyoung7 December 2017

Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott hope to further convince Arsene Wenger they are deserving of a more regular Arsenal first-team role after impressing in the Europa League once again.

Walcott, captain for the game before handing the armband to Wilshere when substituted, notched a goal and added three assists as his team-mate scored one of his own before setting up Mohamed Elneny's late strike.

It was Wilshere's first goal for the Gunners in 928 days and another fine showing amid Wenger's second string selections as the Europa League group stage was wrapped up.

"The boss told us to enjoy ourselves," Walcott told BT Sport. "We played with a lot of freedom. Defensively we were solid. Obviously, it's nice to get all these goals.

"There is plenty of competition when you play for Arsenal. We are doing our best to give the manager a headache to pick us for the team. We were very professional tonight. We will see in time what's going to happen."

Wilshere added: "It's a bit of a relief [that I scored]. It's one of those games - it didn't mean anything because we had topped the group.

"It's one of those games you need to be in the right mind - we enjoyed it. We're happy to go into the next round. All we can do when we get our opportunity is give the manager a headache."