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PHOTOS: Chelsea rout Arsenal as referee sends off wrong player
Chelsea routed title rivals Arsenal 6-0 in manager Arsene Wenger's 1,000th game in charge as blundering referee Andre Marriner was left red-faced after he sent off the wrong player in the Premier League match at Stamford Bridge, in London, on Saturday.
Arsenal were trailing 2-0 to early goals from Samuel Eto'o and Andre Schuerrle when Mariner gave a penalty and a red card to Kieran Gibbs after team mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain handled a shot from Eden Hazard on the goalline.
Replays showed Oxlade-Chamberlain clearly mouthing "it was me" to Marriner in the aftermath but the referee, who took a long time before awarding a penalty, stuck by his original decision.
Hazard converted the penalty, before a double from Oscar and a first for the club from Mohamed Salah completed a miserable afternoon for Arsene Wenger who was celebrating his 1,000th match in charge of the north London club.
'Seven minutes gone we were 2-0 up, it's game over'
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho extended his unbeaten record against his bitter managerial rival to 11 games and the league leaders moved seven points clear of third-placed Arsenal having played a game more.
Second-placed Liverpool, who are also seven points adrift of Chelsea with two games in hand, visit Cardiff City later on Saturday and Manchester City, in fourth, host bottom club Fulham.
This was Arsenal's biggest defeat since they were thrashed 8-2 by Manchester United in 2011 and will feature high on Wenger's list of worst performances in his 17-1/2 years in charge.
It was the second time in six weeks that Arsenal had visited a major title rival and left with their tails between their legs after their 5-1 thrashing by Liverpool last month.
In a similar vein to that encounter, their defence was all at sea in the early stages, allowing Chelsea to effectively wrap up the points within minutes of the kickoff.
"We started incredibly," Mourinho told BT Sport. "Seven minutes gone we were 2-0 up, it's game over.
"We started very strong. I sent the message across that it was very important that we really want Arsenal to feel not comfortable.
"The way they play. We managed to do that...we were too strong for them."
Blundering referee sends off wrong Arsenal player
The visitors had the first chance with Olivier Giroud forcing a smart save from Petr Cech after four minutes but seconds later they fell behind.
With Arsenal over-committed, Chelsea sprung forward quickly and Schuerrle fed Eto'o in acres of space on the left of the penalty area. The experienced striker cut inside a half-hearted challenge and curled a superb left-foot finish into the corner.
With the Arsenal defence in disarray, Chelsea struck another rapier-like blow after seven minutes, again exposing Arsenal's open left flank with Schuerrle this time applying the finish with a low drive across Wojciech Szczesny into the corner.
It was then Marriner's turn to rival Arsenal's blundering backline for the day's costliest error as he flashed a red card in Gibbs's direction after Oxlade-Chamberlain had made a diving fingertip save on the line to deny Hazard.
Replays showed an incredulous Oxlade-Chamberlain mouthing "it was me" at the official, but the decision stood and Gibbs trudged to the touchline before Hazard calmly stroked the penalty down the middle of the goal after 17 minutes.
'The penalty is a penalty and the red card is a red card, but the wrong player'
Mourinho, often the quickest out of the blocks to criticise officials, this time came to their defence.
"There were lots of people in box," he said. "From the bench you couldn't see, one of my assistants said it was (Mikel) Arteta, one said Chamberlain. The penalty is a penalty and the red card is a red card, but the wrong player."
The match was over as a contest but Chelsea continued to toy with their opponents, adding a fourth through Oscar who was set up by Fernando Torres to finish from close range three minutes before the break.
Arsenal's calamitous afternoon was neatly encapsulated when Szczesny made a hash of saving Oscar's curling shot which bounced up off the ground before tamely finding the net.
Salah came off the bench to slot his first goal for the club under the Arsenal keeper for Chelsea's sixth.