WE need to talk about Chelsea’s long-standing disciplinary problem.
It’s an issue that has been brushed under the rug for far too long, and only now has that rug been removed, leaving us agape at the small mountain of yellow and red cards that have amassed there in recent seasons. It’s a wonder we were able to get from one side of the room to the other without using crampons.
In 2023/24, the Blues accrued 105 cautions in the league alone, a record in the Premier League era. Last season, they again topped the naughty list, with 99 league bookings, 37.5% more than any other top-six finisher.
Not content with that, they have recently added red cards to their repertoire. Three in their last three outings. Five since May.
The latter acts of stupidity explain why Chelsea’s misdemeaning ways have finally come under proper scrutiny as pundits begin to recognise that a potentially very decent – but ultimately flawed – collective under Enzo Maresca will always be compromised by ill-discipline.
There will be no title successes – or even genuine title challenges – while they continue to handicap themselves on a semi-regular basis.
That though is a big picture concern. When looking ahead to this Saturday’s hosting of Liverpool it only offers up value.
That’s because the Reds tend to play fair, within reason, with only Arsenal, Brentford and Man City picking up fewer yellow cards in the league last term. Chelsea though bring out the worst in them.
In their last six meetings across all comps we have seen an average of 6.1 cautions and that’s very much on the high side. Add in too the extreme pressure both clubs are presently under and this is unlikely to be a tranquil affair.
On Tuesday evening, in the Champions League, Joao Pedro was the latest Chelsea player to be dismissed, booked twice despite entering the field of play an hour in.
The former Brighton attacker will be available for this weekend but is that necessarily a plus? Since starting his Chelsea tenure on fire, the 24-year-old has visibly struggled to make any meaningful impact of late, in a centre-forward role that fails to get the best from him. He has not taken on a shot of any kind for 373 minutes, his last effort blocked in the early stages vs Brentford in mid-September. 28% of his most recent 150 touches have gone to the opposition.
Right now, he is a player unable to reach his usual levels but in truth Maresca will have no choice but to deploy him, a consequence of Chelsea’s bizarre obsession with signing wingers over strikers. The only other options are Tyrique George, who is too raw, or Marc Guiu who is too lightweight.
Behind Pedro there will be a great big Cole Palmer-shaped hole that was filled on Tuesday by Facunda Buononotte who looked out of his depth throughout.
Then there’s Chelsea’s rearguard to consider, a defence rendered ordinary by ordinary players, their best practitioners either injured or suspended. Any back four featuring Benoit Badiashile doesn’t fill you with confidence. Factor in Jorrel Hato’s acclimatisation to the breakneck speed of English football and a statement win for the hosts this Saturday does not feel in the wind.
A draw though, well a draw is certainly possible. That’s because if we have to talk about Chelsea’s ongoing card fetish, we must also discuss Florian Wirtz.
Naturally, to place too much blame on the German international for his new team’s relative problems this term – ‘relative’ because they reside at the summit of the Premier League – would be grossly unfair. After all, there are clear issues at the back, exacerbated by Ibrahima Konate’s fluctuating form, that has led to Arne Slot’s side panicking at counters and finding themselves susceptible to high presses.
On three occasions they have relinquished a two-goal advantage and required late strikes to salvage the points.
The arbitrary impact of Mo Salah should also be acknowledged.
Yet without a doubt, the main cause of their regression is a £449m summer refurb that in due course might make Liverpool formidable but presently only has them disjointed. And Wirtz is front and centre of that.
Once again, on Tuesday night, away to Galatasaray in the Champions League, the 22-year-old admirably put in the yards but once again it was all to no avail. It’s now eight games and counting without a goal or assist for a talent who was widely tipped to be the signing of the season.
Of course, Wirtz is simply too good not to click at some juncture, but if passes continue to go astray in West London, and the majority of his duels are lost, what degree of attacking threat will the Reds pose? Ahead of him will be Alexander Isak who, even to a casual observer, looks only three-quarters sharp after sacrificing a pre-season to secure his big-money move.
Both teams then have issues, ones that will not, and cannot, be resolved by the time kick-off rolls around. This offers up the prospect of some chaos, which in turn suggests goals, but this fixture – specifically when held at Stamford Bridge – does not have a history of multi-goal thrillers. An average of two goals per 90 across their last 12 encounters is a third under the norm.
What it does tend to produce however is draws, five in the last seven in the capital. It would hardly shock if another stalemate, between two flawed, potentially brilliant collectives, played out again.
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