Pedro Neto was dismissed for a second yellow card during Chelsea’s defeat to Arsenal on Sunday, but the player seemed to indicate afterwards that he didn’t know he was on a yellow.
Pedro Neto received two yellow cards in the space of a few minutes to significantly damage Chelsea’s hopes of a late comeback against Arsenal, with the team 2-1 down at the time of the winger’s dismissal.
Yet Neto seemed to indicate after his second yellow that it was only his first, holding up one finger towards the referee and anyone who would listen as he left the pitch.
The reality is that Neto was indeed shown a yellow card in the immediate aftermath of Arsenal’s second goal, and there’s no reason he shouldn’t have been aware of it.
TV footage has since emerged showing that Neto was looking directly at the referee as the official reached into his pocket to produce the first yellow, with the referee also whistling at the offence.
Neto also pointed to himself as if to confirm it was him being booked. It’s simply not reasonable to believe he missed it.
The big screens around the Emirates Stadium flashed up to confirm the booking, and Neto’s name had a yellow card next to his name for the following minutes of the game.
The first yellow had been shown for dissent, with Neto ignoring the referee’s instruction to the Chelsea team to step back while he spoke with team captain Reece James. Every other player on the team complied, but Neto continued to follow the ref and speak to him.
James was clearly frustrated at Neto’s needless booking, pushing him away after the card was shown. James had indicated to Neto to stay back on more than one occasion prior to the yellow, but the winger ignored his captain.
The second yellow was then shown for a clear, cynical foul on Gabriel Martinelli, and there was no debating the validity of that decision.
In an ideal world, a player would always know when they’re on a yellow card, with the booking acting as a warning to improve their behaviour or risk a second.
But this isn’t a necessary requirement. Arsenal fans will remember will Martinelli’s own red card against Wolves, where he committed his second yellow-card offence before he’d been shown the first yellow. That didn’t matter, and he was shown both and dismissed anyway.
So even if Neto somehow missed the referee whistling and producing a yellow when he was two yards away from the ref and looking at him, and even if he never looked at the big screen, that doesn’t invalidate the booking or mean the sending-off was invalid.