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Chelsea broke the record for the most yellow cards received by a team in a single Premier League season during their 2-1 win over Brighton on Wednesday that bolstered their chances of qualifying for European football next season.
Raheem Sterling received Chelsea’s record-breaking 102nd yellow card for a foul on Valentín Barco in the 77th minute before captain Reece James was shown a straight red for kicking out at Brighton’s João Pedro.
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Chelsea midfielder Moisés Caicedo was also booked during a bad tempered contest at the American Express Stadium which brought the team’s season total to 103 with one match left to play.
The tally surpasses the previous record (101) set by Leeds United in the 2021-22 season.
Mauricio Pochettino’s youthful Chelsea team have struggled to maintain their discipline throughout what has been a difficult campaign for the west London club, however a run of four consecutive victories has raised spirits at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea have only played two matches without a player picking up a booking this season (Dec. 6 vs. Manchester United and May 2 vs. Tottenham) and have received multiple yellow cards in 30 of their 37 matches this season.
The most yellows they have been shown in a single match was the six they picked up against Wolves on Dec. 24, 2023, and they have played in seven games in which they received at least five.
Caicedo — who joined the club in a £115 million ($144.7m) deal last summer — has been booked the most, with the midfielder entering the referees’ notebook on 11 occasions.
However, six players have been booked more than the Chelsea man this season with Fulham midfielder João Palhinha leading the list with 13 yellow cards.
Only four players have ever been shown 14 yellow cards in a Premier League season since 2008-09 — Cheick Tioté (Newcastle United in 2010-11), Lee Cattermole (Sunderland in 2014-15), José Holebas (Watford in 2016-17), Étienne Capoue (Watford in 2018-19) and Palhinha (Fulham in 2022-23).
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Chelsea, who have also been shown four red cards this season, could still see their new record overtaken by Wolves who have picked up 99 yellow cards of their own so far.
The only club in Europe’s top five leagues to have been shown more yellow cards than Chelsea is LaLiga side Getafe who have received 121 in 36 league matches.
Chelsea face Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday.
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