Former Arsenal winger Freddie Ljungberg has been appointed as assistant first-team coach in a coaching shake-up at the club which sees Steve Bould tale charge of the under-23 side.

Ljungberg will work alongside head coach Unai Emery, first-team assistant head coach Juan Carlos Carcedo and first-team coach Pablo Villanueva.

The club say that one of the 42-year-old's main focuses will be on young players who are moving into the first-team.

"Our goal is to create a 'transition team' which will collectively manage a player's development through some of the hardest and most challenging periods of their professional lives," reads a statement on the club website.

"The aim is to create a clear framework for our young players to fulfil their potential at the highest level."

Bould takes over as head coach of the under-23 team and will be responsible for the phase programme for the under-18s with academy manager Per Mertesacker.

Bould will also work with Ljungberg in determining how players transition between the academy and the first-team.

Freddie Ljungberg excited by opportunity to work with Emery

Ljungberg was coaching the Gunners under-16 team before taking up the assistant manager's job at Wolfsburg in February 2017.

He was sacked by the Bundesliga club along with the manager Andries Jonker the following September after a poor start to that season before taking the under-18s job at Arsenal.

The former Sweden international told the official club website:

"I'm really excited by this opportunity to continue helping develop and work with some of the great young players we have coming through in the first-team environment and to work alongside Unai and his coaching team to help Arsenal win trophies.

"I’m looking forward to working in this new structure and to pass on my experience and knowledge about what is needed to succeed at this level."

Arsenal's head of football, Raul Sanllehi, was keen to highlight the club's efforts to put more focus on nurturing their own talent through to professional level.

"Identifying, recruiting and developing young players is a key part of our strategy," said Sanllehi.

"We have some great talent coming through our younger age groups and, like all top clubs, the challenge is to help them make the most of their abilities.

"The hardest part is always the transition from academy football to senior football.

"We already have good programmes in place but these staff changes will ensure our plans are even more robust and clear for every single player. I’m confident it will make a significant difference to our ability to bring players through to the first team."