In the 13th round of the Premier League, Chelsea drew 1-1 with Arsenal at home.
Back in October, ahead of the match against Liverpool, Enzo Maresca claimed he "saw no disciplinary issues" within the Chelsea squad – despite the Blues having already picked up three red cards in their previous four games. Then, in the 96th minute of that fixture, the Chelsea manager himself was sent off for leaving the technical area and rushing towards the corner flag to celebrate Estêvão’s dramatic late winner.
In the subsequent game, Gusto was shown a red card for a reckless sliding tackle against Nottingham Forest. Eleven days later, Liam Delap received a red card in the match against Wolves, with Maresca describing his two fouls as "very stupid."
For a team supposedly without self-control problems, amassing five red cards before Halloween was shocking. But after the Italian manager labeled the unwanted record "embarrassing" and Chelsea went five games without a sending-off, many thought the Blues had turned over a new leaf.
That was until Sunday, when Moises Caicedo committed an inexplicable impulsive act against Arsenal: he lunged at Mikel Merino with studs showing before rolling on the ground as if feigning injury, eventually being dismissed. The Colombian’s red card means Chelsea have picked up six red cards in 20 games across all competitions – four of which have come in 13 Premier League outings, putting the Stamford Bridge side on course to set a competition record.
The undesirable record for the most red cards in a single Premier League season is currently shared by Sunderland (2009-10) and Queens Park Rangers (2011-12), who each amassed nine red cards in 38 games.
If Chelsea fail to calm down, they could easily surpass this mark. With an average of one red card every 3.3 games, the Blues could be shown 12 red cards this season – undoubtedly earning them the unwanted title of the most ill-disciplined team in Premier League history. Just two seasons ago, they broke the single-season yellow card record, picking up 105 bookings under Mauricio Pochettino.
However, amid his team’s spate of sendings-off, Maresca has sought to voice his concerns over refereeing standards – even appearing to suggest his side has been unfairly treated after Caicedo’s dismissal against Arsenal. The Chelsea manager said after the game: “Caicedo’s red card – it’s a red card, but why wasn’t Bentancur’s challenge on Reece James a red card when we played away at Tottenham? As a manager, I find it hard to understand why they judge differently. Caicedo’s was a red card, yes. Bentancur’s was a red card, yes, so why didn’t they give him one? I can’t comprehend it. The truth is it was a red card, but why do they judge in different ways? For Chalobah’s incident, I asked the referee and he told me it wasn’t an elbow. That’s what he said. Chalobah had a black eye and was icing it at halftime, but they judged it differently.”
Closely following Chelsea in the red card rankings are Newcastle United, West Ham United and Wolves, who each have two. Manchester United, Burnley, Aston Villa, Everton, Sunderland and Bournemouth have one apiece. Despite often playing with 10 men, Chelsea currently sit third in the league and, on paper, have a relatively easy run of fixtures until the New Year. After drawing with leaders Arsenal on Sunday, they will be hoping to remain in the title race come January. They face Leeds United in midweek.
