Amid Queen’s Park Rangers’ disciplinary woes of 2011–12, manager Mark Hughes suggested his players needed to improve their emotional control and tame the “edge” which some of them played with.
QPR’s ill-discipline that season, which resulted in a joint-Premier League record of nine red cards, almost contributed to their relegation.
Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea are suffering from a red card epidemic at the start of 2025–26. The Blues have had dismissals in back-to-back Premier League games, and João Pedro’s two bookings on Tuesday night mean they’ve been reduced to ten players in three of their previous four outings.
Is it merely bad luck, or can Chelsea’s red card blitz be properly explained?
