Chelsea wipe the floor with Ajax - the pun that wrote itself long before the end

Enzo and the Blues ready for kick-off : Picture by @YTJourno

Champions League Group Stage - MD3

Chelsea (4) 5 Guiu 18, Caicedo 27, Fernandez pen 45, Estevao 45+6, George 48

Ajax (1) 1 Weghorst pen 33 Taylor s/o 17

Ridiculously easy. And an utter embarrassment for the once mighty Ajax.

The multiple Euro champions were reduced very early on to 10 men and offering scant resistance as a far-from full-strength Chelsea strolled through the gears.

Six years ago, the two clubs played out a thrilling 4-4 draw at the Bridge. Thee

Given the potentially tricky games still to come for Chelsea in this group stage - with trips to Atalanta and Napoli, as well as a visit from Barcelona - a nice easy three points was an ideal building block given they have already suffered one defeat at Bayern.

For once, it was the opposition and not the Blues being reduced to 10 men. Four times in this campaign, Enzo Maresca's men have paid for indiscipline with red cards, but this time it was opposition skipper Kenneth Tylor given his marching orders after planting suds into the shin of Facundo Buonanotte.

Within a minute of having the extra man advantage, Chelsea were in front when a ball swung into the middle was nodded back across the six-yard box for Marc Guiu to put away - the young Spaniard's first goal for the Blues.

Soon after and the contest already looked dead when Moises Caidedo left fly from distance and a deflection off Josep Satulo took it past keeper Remko Pasveer and into the bottom corner.

The Dutch side replied from the spot when ex-Man United striker Wout Weghorst potted from 12 yards after Raul Moro had been trodden on at the edge of the box by a clumsy Tosin. The kick was one keeper Filip Jorgensen might have saved as he got a hand to it, but not enough purchase to keep it from bouncing past him.

But the visitors' hopes was quickly snuffed out when Weghorst undid his work by conceding a penalty - bringing down Enzo Fernandez with a sliding challenge in which he failed to get the ball. The Chelsea skipper put away the spot-kick gift himself.

And just to underline how one-sided this all was, Estevao added a fourth from the spot in the six minute of injury time, having been felled by Youri Baas. The 18-year-old's shot was impressively nerveless.

There was something of a makeshift look to Chelsea, with illness to Malo Gusto persuading Maresca to deploy Caicedo at right back - probably not the best use of arguably the Premier League's most consistent midfielder this season so far.

Joao Pedro was suspended, having been sent off in the previous match against Benfica, meaning Guiu was entrusted with the number nine role.

But the poverty of the opposition - a pale shadow of the greats from the past from that proud club - meant it was an ideal time for players like Buononotte, Romeo Lavia, Jamie Gittens, Guiu and Reggie Walsh to have a run out.

Andrey Santos and Tyrique George came on at the interval with Maresca comfortable in the knowledge there would be no stress on his side, whoever was out there.

Both repaid the boss immediately with George soon tucking home the fifth from a Santos pass. "Are you Tottenham in disguise?" chanted home fans. Ajax boss John Heitinga was predictably teased about getting sacked in the morning.

The second half was as humiliating for the Dutch side as the first had been in its own way, with Chelsea camped in the Ajax half throughout and passing it around untroubled, as if fulfilling a training day routine. Estevao forced one save and almost scored with an overhead kick but the margin of victory had all become a bit academic.

Blues: (4-2-3-1) Jorgensen - Caicedo (Acheampong 49), Fofana, Tosin (Chalobah h/t), Cucurella - Fernandez (Andrey Santos h/t), Lavia (Walsh 65) - Buonanotte, Estevao, Gittens, Guiu (George h/t)

Ajax: (4-3-3) Pasveer - Rosa (Gaaei 84), Itakura, Sutalo, Baas - McConnell (Regeer 79), Gloukh (Mokio 23), Taylor - Moro, Weghorst (Klaassen h/t), Godts (Fitz-Jim 84)