CL: Welbeck treble helps Arsenal thrash Galatasaray

London Danny Welbeck gave Arsene Wenger the perfect anniversary gift as the Arsenal strikers hattrick inspired a crucial 41 win against Galatasaray in the Champions League on WednesdayArsenals English striker Danny Welbeck celebrates scoring his third goal Arsenals fourth during the UEFA Champions League Group D football match between Arsenal and Galatasaray at The Emirates Stadium in north London PicAFPWenger celebrated the 18th anniversary of his arrival at Arsenal on Wednesday but the Gunners boss demurred this week when offered the chance to reflect on his numerous moments of triumph in north LondonInstead Wenger remains focused on ensuring his current crop will one day be recalled as fondly as some of his previous more successful vintagesArsenal had been spluttering through a dispiriting run of one win from their last six matches in all competitions including a lacklustre 20 defeat at Borussia Dortmund that marked their first loss in the opening game of the Champions League group stages since 2003Against that troubling backdrop Wenger may regard this muchneeded Group D success as one of his more satisfying victoriesAs well as kickstarting Arsenals European campaign there was vindication for Wengers eye for talent as the first treble of Welbecks career provided the perfect riposte to critics who claim the England international isnt a natural goalscorerWelbeck who had scored only once since his Acircpound16 million 25 million move from Manchester United in September struck twice before an Alexis Sanchez goal put the result beyond doubt before halftimeWelbeck wrapped up his hattrick in the second half although Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny briefly soured Wengers anniversary celebrations when he was sent off for a foul on Burak Yilmaz who converted the resulting penaltyThat instinct of a goalscorer in Danny Welbeck was more aggressive and he finished well Wenger said He has such good pace it gives him time to finish calmlyWe had good pace in all areas and overall the performance was good Galatasaray manager Cesare Prandelli added We should have played more aggressive The Champions League is a big tournament and when you come you have to come readyWe did not show our good qualities Surgical precision Chile winger Sanchez is capable of dissecting a defence with surgical precision and he took the scalpel to Galatasarays rearguard to lay on Arsenals 22nd minute openerHis rapid burst towards the Galatasaray area from the left flank was met with little resistance giving Sanchez time to slip a perfectlyweighted reverse pass behind the ponderous Felipe Melo who allowed Welbeck to run off him and poke a cool finish past Fernando MusleraWelbeck left Galatasarays defenders trailing in his wake again eight minutes later when he latched on to Aurelien Chedjous misplaced backheader showing impressive strength to withstand Melos lumbering challenge as he glided clear to steer his shot beyond MusleraWith their team in tatters Galatasarays always volatile fans responded by unleashing an unscheduled pyrotechnic display causing play to be briefly halted as the Turkish teams captain Wesley Sneijder appealed for calm after several flares landed on the pitchMuslera collected the flares and dropped them on the sidelines at which point helmeted riot police and stewards filed along the advertising hoardings Wengers men showed no signs of being distracted by the incident and increased their lead in the 41st minuteWith Galatasarays defence in complete meltdown Mesut Ozil had plenty of space to pick out Sanchez who beat a feeble offside trap and checked inside Chedjou to plant a clinical finish into the far corner for his first Champions League goal since October 2012There was no letup from Arsenal and Welbeck completed his treble when he made a welltimed run to meet Alex OxladeChamberlains pass and clipped his shot over Muslera in the 52nd minuteThe only frustration for Wenger came in the 63rd minute when Szczesny rushed off his line and caught Yilmaz as the striker advanced on goal Italian referee Gianluca Rocchi waved a red card at the Polish goalkeeper and his replacement David Ospinas first task was to pick the ball out of the net as Yilmaz picked himself up to stroke in the penalty