However, Dutch forward Robin van Persie scored a deadly quickfire double as the under-fire Gunners refused to bow out of the title race at this early stage.
RVP's leveller, though, was clearly more than a yard offside as he latched onto Denilson's through-ball. Buoyed, the North London side surged on to score another, which would prove to be the winner.
Normally placid after games, Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari decided to have a rare rant, hitting out at referee Mike Dean and his assistants.
The Brazilian said: "I hope he [Dean] looks at the TV and he and the linesman see they are wrong, and they say 'sorry'.
"We needed a man to come to Stamford Bridge as a referee for both sides - not for one side."
He also accused Dean of trying to "kill" the Blues, but escaped any reprimand over his comments.
The buck stops with assistant John Stokes, who was better placed than anyone as Van Persie restored parity. His flag, of course, stayed down.
Now, the Professional Game Match Officials board has decided that Stokes will be excluded from this weekend's matches.
Dean will referee Newcastle vs. Stoke City, however, with the other assistant, Simon Beck, on duty in the Championship.
Neither the PGMO nor parent organisation The Premier League have confirmed that Stokes was dropped on account of his controversial decision-making.
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