Gilberto has urged Arsene Wenger to add to his Arsenal squad in order to keep his young players motivated.

The loss of Mathieu Flamini to Milan and the likely departure of Alexander Hleb has cast fresh doubts over whether Arsenal will be able to compete for the title next season.

"I think Arsene Wenger needs to bring in some players to compete with the other big teams," he told the Daily Star.

"They have many more players than us. It has been hard for us to fight the other teams because they are a lot stronger and more competitive.

"I think one of the biggest jobs is to keep everyone happy and motivated at Arsenal. Although we played some good football, we didn't win anything."

Gilberto, who spent much of last season on the substitutes' bench, is eager to see out the last year of his contract at Arsenal but has yet to discuss his future with Wenger.

"I have no idea exactly what is going to happen. But I want to stay at Arsenal as I have one year left."