Arsenal suffered as remarkable 'mistaken identity' gaffe cost them at Chelsea

21 October 2023 , 06:00

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Kieran Gibbs was left bemused after he was given a red card against Chelsea in 2014 (Image: Getty Images)

It has been almost 10 years since that infamous refereeing gaffe between Chelsea and Arsenal.

The incident occurred during the Blues' crushing 6-0 victory at Stamford Bridge on 22 March 2014. Samuel Eto'o gave Chelsea the lead in the fifth minute with a sublime curling finish, before Andre Schurrle doubled their lead shortly after, driving the ball beyond a hapless Wojciech Szczesny.

Then, controversy broke loose when Eden Hazard's shot was deflected wide. After a brief pause, referee Andre Marriner pointed to the penalty spot as he thought Kieran Gibbs had handled the ball.

Marriner sent Gibbs off for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity. However, replays showed that it was in fact Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who touched the ball with his hand, not Gibbs. The Arsenal players surrounded the referee, with Oxlade-Chamberlain telling Marriner that it was him who committed the offence.

But, even after Oxlade-Chamberlain went over to consult Marriner, the 52-year-old stuck with his initial decision and Gibbs went for an early bath. Hazard stepped up from the penalty spot and slotted home to all-but secure three points for Chelsea in the 17th minute.

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Oscar then struck either side of half-time to put Chelsea 5-0 up, before Mohamed Salah added the Blues sixth to wrap up a comprehensive victory in Arsene Wenger's 1000th match in charge of Arsenal. Despite that score-line, the focus after the game was on Marriner and his embarrassing mistake.

Kieran Gibbs was wrongly shown a red card against Chelsea in 2014 (Getty Images)

A statement issued by the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) following the match said: "Andre is an experienced referee and is obviously disappointed that an error of mistaken identity was made in this case.

"Incidents of mistaken identity are very rare and are often the result of a number of different technical factors. While this was a difficult decision, Andre is disappointed that he failed to identify the correct player. He expressed his disappointment to Arsenal when he was made aware of the issue."

Wenger was left bemused about the decision and admitted Marriner should have been able to change his mind. "The referee made a mistake because he missed the identity of the player," Wenger said at the time.

"He has not seen what happened at all. He gave a corner. I don’t know who told him that it was a penalty. The referee should be able to change his mind, especially if he has not seen it. He should at least check, rather than sending off the wrong player."

Kieran King