Wenger to focus on League form

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will focus on recovering domestic form to be in the best possible shape for a potential tough draw in the last 16 of the Champions League next year.

The Gunners produced the perfect response to silence their critics with a 4-1 win over Galatasaray on Tuesday night in Istanbul, where Aaron Ramsey scored one of the goals of the season.

There was no European hangover from the dissapointment of a 3-2 defeat at Stoke, as Arsenal, who had already qualified for the knockout stages and left the likes of Alexis Sanchez back in London, swept aside the Turks with a dominant first-half display.

Lukas Podolski, making a rare start, fired the Barclays Premier League side ahead inside two minutes, before Ramsey doubled the lead with a neat finish.

Better was to come from the Wales midfielder, though, as he crashed in a half-volley from 30 yards, so good it was applauded by the home fans.

Wesley Sneijder clipped home a late 20-yard free-kick as a consolation for Galatasaray, before Podolski grabbed a fourth on the break deep into stoppage time.

Dortmund’s draw against Anderlecht, however, means Arsenal finished in second place from Group D and so could face the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Paris St Germain or defending champions Bayern Munich when the pairings are made on Monday.

By then, though, Wenger believes Arsenal could themselves be a very different prospect, with several key players set to return from injury in the coming weeks.

“Let’s wait for the draw, prepare well. We can focus now on the Premiership,” said Wenger.

“It was my 180th game in Champions League on Tuesday night, we won away from home and now 15 consecutive years in the last 16. That, I believe, is an achievement.

“So let’s focus on the Premiership until the end of February and the FA Cup as well, after then we will see where we stand.”

Wenger had come in for some personal abuse from the London club’s own supporters in the aftermath of the defeat at Stoke, which left Arsenal sixth in the Premier League.

The French coach was pleased with the “strong response” shown by his team.

“We looked dangerous every time we won the ball back, we had good penetration, we scored good goals and until half-time I feel we were very strong,” he said.

“(In the) second half we suffered a bit more for two reasons – some players had not enough competitive games and especially I had to take two players off.

“We were a bit more lightweight in the second half in midfield. We were closer to conceding one or two more in the second half and we defended very well.

“We still had our opportunities but some decisions around the box went against us in the second half, but we tried and overall, it was a strong performance.”

Both Ramsey and Mathieu Flamini were taken off at the break with minor muscle problems, but are expected to be available for Saturday’s late afternoon kick-off against Newcastle at the Emirates Stadium.