Aaron Ramsey was pleased to see Arsenal take full advantage of an immediate opportunity to remedy Saturday's defeat to Stoke by thrashing Galatasaray 4-1 in the Champions League.

The Gunners shipped three early goals to Stoke at the weekend before struggling to make it 3-2 by full-time, with the result heaping further pressure on manager Arsene Wenger.

But Ramsey and Lukas Podolski both scored two goals in a Group D triumph in Istanbul that saw the London club prepare for the final 16 in some style while answering some of their critics.

Asked if Arsenal's win was a good way to bounce back from the Stoke setback, Welsh midfielder Ramsey told Sky Sports 5: "Obviously we came here wanting to win the game so we're happy that we won.

"We finished off on a high in the group stages and now we're looking forward to seeing who we're up against in the next round.

"We looked dangerous every time we went forward tonight, which was pleasing, and we scored a few goals which is always nice.

"So we took full advantage of the opportunity. It was nice to get the four goals that we scored tonight."

Podolski fired Arsenal ahead inside three minutes before Ramsey opened his account with a drive into the top corner.

Ramsey's second goal was special – the 23-year-old arrowed an unstoppable shot into the Galatasaray net from 30 yards out.

Describing his strike, the Welshman said: "The ball came to the edge of the box and I thought, 'why not have a go?'. So I had a go and it went in."

Wesley Sneijder did force the Turkish side onto the scoresheet with a late free-kick but Arsenal had the final say as Podolski converted his brace with the last kick of the game.

Wenger admitted he was slightly disappointed Arsenal had not done enough to beat Borussia Dortmund to top spot.

The German club were held to a 1-1 draw by Anderlecht, meaning a 6-0 victory in Turkey would have seen the Gunners secure first place – a preferable position ahead of the draw for the last 16.

"A little bit, but we knew at half-time we had to score six without conceding and I think the fact we had to take (Mathieu) Flamini and Ramsey off took a bit of our power away going forward," said Wenger.

"In the second half we had a few more problems dictating the game.

"Unfortunately it wasn't enough but we finished with 13 points and did the job tonight."

Mobile app users, watch the match highlights here.