By Sir Hardly Anyone
- How the top 3 clubs are using different approaches to maintain their position
- Does the referee each team get make any difference? Yes, and there could be an explosion coming!
For this weekend’s game between Chelsea and Arsenal, we have
Referee: Chris Kavanagh. Assistants: Richard West, Matthew Wilkes. Fourth official: James Linington. VAR: Jarred Gillett. Assistant VAR: Darren Cann.
The record of the two clubs and the referee in terms of yellow cards so far this season is…
- Arsenal 12 yellow in 8 league games (1.5 per game)
- Chelsea 26 yellow in 8 league games (3.25 per game)
- Referee Chris Kavanagh: 12 yellow in 5 games (2.4 per game)
So it would seem quite possible that this referee will continue with his average for games and give perhaps one card to an Arsenal player and three to Chelsea’s wilder defenders, and so stray a little way out of this normal 2.4 zone.
Here is the referee’s record so far this campaign..
| Competition | Date | Home | Away | Score | Yellows |
| Lge 2 | Sep 9 | MK Dons | Notts County | 1:1 | 1 |
| Champs | Sep 17 | Millwall | Leeds | 0:3 | 0 |
| PL | Sep 24 | Liverpool | West Ham | 3:1 | 2 |
| Lge Cup | Sep 27 | Newcastle | Man City | 1:0 | 4 |
| PL | Sep 30 | Man Utd | Crystal Palace | 0:1 | 5 |
This referee last season. Last season he oversaw 13 games last season in the PL, so quite why he was forced back down the leagues for the start of this season I don’t know. Maybe someone put in a complaint, or maybe they felt he needed reminding of how things went.
Here are his matches from last season
| Date | Home team | Away team | Score | Yellow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2022 | Crystal Palace | Chelsea | 1:2 | 4 |
| Oct 9, 2022 | West Ham United | Fulham | 3:1 | 4 |
| Oct 16, 2022 | Leeds United | Arsenal | 0:1 | 2 |
| Oct 30, 2022 | Manchester Utd | West Ham United | 1:0 | 4 |
| Nov 13, 2022 | Brighton & Hove | Aston Villa | 1:2 | 9 |
| Mar 4, 2023 | Arsenal | AFC Bournemouth | 3:2 | 2 |
| Mar 12, 2023 | West Ham United | Aston Villa | 1:1 | 1 |
| Apr 1, 2023 | Nottingham Forest | Wolverhampton W | 1:1 | 8 |
| Apr 8, 2023 | Brentford | Newcastle United | 1:2 | 2 |
| Apr 26, 2023 | West Ham United | Liverpool | 1:2 | – |
| Apr 30, 2023 | AFC Bournemouth | Leeds United | 4:1 | 1 |
| May 7, 2023 | Newcastle United | Arsenal | 0:2 | 3 |
| May 20 2023 | AFC Bournemouth | Manchester Utd | 0:1 | 1 |
There were 13 games last season that he oversaw involving Premier League clubs, and within those he offered up 41 yellow cards. This made an average of 3.15 per game.
Last season statistics:
- Arsenal 52 yellow in 38 league games (1.37 per game)
- Chelsea 77 yellow in 38 league games (2.03 per game)
- Referee Chris Kavanagh: 41 yellow in 13 PL games (3.15 per game)
- Total yellow cards in season: 1375 cards in 380 games (3.61 per game, or 1.81 per team)
And to compare here again are this season’s statistics:
- Arsenal 12 yellow in 8 league games (1.5 per game)
- Chelsea 26 yellow in 8 league games (3.25 per game)
- Referee Chris Kavanagh: 12 yellow in 5 games (2.4 per game)
- Total yellow cards in season: 375 cards in 80 games (4.69 per game)
So what can we gather from all this data?
First, thus far Arsenal and Chelsea are picking up more yellow cards per game this season than they were last season. With Chelsea that jump is in fact quite astonishing – they are getting 60% more yellow cards this season than in 2022/23. On the other hand Arsenal’s yellow card tally has only gone up by nine percent.
That it confirms what we have all observed. That referees are much more ready to wave cards around this season than they were last season.
Overall, the season’s figures have risen from 3.61 yellows per game to 4.69 yellows per game – a rise of 30%, which is utterly astonishing for one season.
Arsenal’s yellow card rate has risen from 1,37 per game to 1.5 per game, a rise of 9% – so a rise that is way below the average. Arteta obviously knew what they PGMO were playing at, and adjusted the playing style accordingly. Exactly as he did when he first came, taking Arsenal from the most carded club to one of the least, in just one season.
Chelsea’s management however seem not to be interested in the effect of the dreaded yellow fever, and their yellow card rate has risen from 2.03 per game to 3.25 per game, a rise of 60% per game, and way above the average. In fact it is not unreasonable to say that either…
a) the Chelsea management are sending the team out to hurt the opposition.
b) the referees have really got it in for Chelsea, and Chelsea has yet to find a reasonable and effective way to make a complaint about what is going on.
c) Chelsea are in such a muddle with their changes of manager and their mass purchasing of players, that no one has got to grip with the issue of the card waving at all.
d) Maybe they will drop from their 25 list all those players on the edge of a banning order, for the second half of the season, thus allowing them to kick away at the opposition with near impunity..
Incidentally, while we are at this we could look at Tottenham’s change from last season to this. Last season they got 75 yellows or 1.97 yellow cards per game. This season it is 27 from 12 games or 3.37 cards per game. An increase of 71%. Quite astonishing really for the broadcasters’ favourite side.
Chris Kavanagh [born Manchester] ref for chelsea game – they have never lost a home game he has reffed (won 8 drawn 1) and in 13 games with him they have won 11 games (1 lost, 1 draw)…stinky me thinks…those games are spread out over 5 years – PGMO is so dodge
I see that last season he refereed 13 games…among which 3 Arsenal games… none we lost, so I won’t complain…yet, that means that almost a quarter of his games involved Arsenal…go figure…. and he had other teams multiple times.
It’s the guy on VAR that worries me. I’m sure he’s stitched us up before more than once. Against Palace for one if I remember correctly?
@Nitram
After seeing the VAR errors in the lead-up to Sokratis’ goal against Palace, I reckon Gillet would be more suited to officiating Aussie Rules Football.
seismic
Yep thanks, that’s the one.
And again today getting the ref to look at the hand ball. Not only were arms in a natural position when in a strained jump, but the ball was ‘deflected’ on to his arm, which immediately negates ‘deliberate’ hand ball. Go figure. Also not getting the ref to look at the red for the foul on Jesus.
He’s a cheat, plain and simple.
I’m confused by the fact that VAR can re-referee a match after play has continued for a minute after an incident. What would have happened if Arsenal had scored in the interim? Would the goal have been given? What would have happened if a player received a red card in the interim? Would the red card stand?
If it took them that long to ask the referee to look at it on the monitor, it can’s have been “clear and obvious”.
It seems to me that this situation plays right into PGMOL’s hands and gives them even more power to manipulate the outcome of matches.