Chelsea's ongoing yellow card problem is nothing new but must be fixed

Eight games into the 2024-25 Premier League season and Chelsea F.C. look like a team on the right track. Which is not something people have been able to say confidently for a long time. They are currently sixth in the Premier League with four wins, two draws, and two losses (which came against the top two teams in the league Manchester City and Liverpool). However, despite all the good vibes surrounding the club, one problem must be fixed. And that is the abundance of yellow cards this team accumulates. 

Through eight games, the Blues lead the league with 30 yellow cards, four more than the team with the second-most, Manchester United, which has 26. This issue is nothing new. Last year, CFC broke the record with 105 yellow cards in a season. That averaged out to 2.76 yellow cards a game across 38 games; this season, they are averaging 3.75 yellow cards a game. 

In their most recent game against Liverpool, Chelsea was missing two defenders: Marc Cucurella and Wesley Fofana because they both had five yellow cards, and any player who collects five yellow cards in the first 19 games of a season serves a one-match suspension. Nicolas Jackson has four yellow cards, and their superstar Cole Palmer has three. Moises Caicedo, Pedro Neto, Renato Veiga, and Levi Colwill all have two. 

There are many reasons why this is a big issue for Chelsea, one of which is that it can cause players to miss games, shows a lack of discipline among the players, and is something other teams can take advantage of. Many of these yellow cards are not even for fouls but for dissent. Last season Jackson had ten bookings and nine of them were for dissent, early on during the previous season former manager Mauricio Pochettino said “We need to grow up.” This was in response to the former Villareal striker who had five yellow cards in the first month of the prior season.  

The Senegal international is a nice young player who has eight goal contributions in eight games, but his lack of discipline has become a big problem and is something he and his manager Enzo Maresca need to get under control. Maresca seems to acknowledge this yellow card dilemma is an issue, but at the same time is trying to spin it positively. “It’s something we need to improve but overall, I like the team the way they are fighting. I like the way they are becoming a team in these kinds of things. I don’t see any problems about that,” Maresca said. 

He’s not wrong, there is something to be said for a team that likes to mix it up with the opponent when their teammate takes a tough foul. It shows that the team’s chemistry is growing, which is a credit to the new manager, but it can’t be over the top. You don’t want players missing games because they got too many yellows, especially if it winds up being against a good team. 

The youth of this team is still an issue because things like this are examples of immaturity, inexperience, and an absence of veteran leadership. If you look back at one of my previous stories “Chelsea’s Lack of Veteran Leadership Problem,” you’ll see why I felt so strongly about this. 

Right now, CFC fans should feel happy about the way the team is playing so far this season. This young team has meshed together relatively well, and has given us fans an exciting product to watch every week. However, if this yellow card problem is not corrected, it could cost the Blues some games.