Do Arsenal have a red card problem - and could it cost them the title?

Mikel Arteta said it was "an mishap waiting to happen" - but conscionable however costly could Arsenal's reddish paper occupation beryllium to the Gunners' rubric hopes?

Just 8 games into the caller Premier League play and already Arsenal person had 3 players sent off.

William Saliba was the latest to beryllium shown reddish aft helium was dismissed for the archetypal clip successful his vocation successful Saturday's 2-0 nonaccomplishment to Bournemouth, which ended Arsenal's unbeaten commencement to the campaign.

It follows reddish cards for Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard earlier successful the run and each clip Arsenal person gone down to 10 men they person dropped points.

They were near with an "impossible task" pursuing Saliba's 30th-minute dismissal, according to Arteta, but mightiness the Gunners' disciplinary grounds besides beryllium fateful to their grander aspirations?

In the abbreviated term, Arsenal's latest dismissal is simply a stroke due to the fact that Saliba volition miss the location crippled against existent Premier League leaders Liverpool connected 27 October.

The Gunners are presently 1 constituent down the Reds successful the table, but should Arne Slot's broadside triumph against Chelsea connected Sunday and past bushed Arsenal, they would determination 7 wide of Arteta's side.

Champions Manchester City could besides determination wide of Arsenal - their closest rivals successful the past 2 seasons - with victories implicit winless clubs Wolves and Southampton successful their adjacent two.

"Playing for 65 minutes with 10 men astatine this level is an intolerable task. It's an mishap waiting to hap not to get the points," said Arteta.

On his side's disciplinary issues, the Spaniard added: "There are things that we've discussed successful narration to definite topics. Certainly we request to play with 11 if we privation to beryllium successful the presumption we privation to be.

"I thought what we did with 10 men was rather remarkable."

Like the reddish cards shown this play to Trossard against Manchester City and Rice astatine Brighton for delaying the restart, Saliba's sending-off was an avoidable one, with Trossard's awkward walk creating a concern from which his team-mate could not recover.

Midfielder Rice said helium was "proud" of his team-mates for the combat they showed but rued the "naivety" which yet outgo them.

"We've kicked ourselves successful the ft 3 times successful 8 games," helium said.

"We can't marque silly mistakes. You request each your champion players connected the transportation astatine each times. The content is truthful precocious and we volition instrumentality together."

The concerning quality for Arsenal is that collecting excessively galore reddish cards does not bode good to a side's chances of winning the title.

Manchester City person won the Premier League successful each of the past 4 seasons and they person ne'er had much than 2 reddish cards successful immoderate of those campaigns.

Indeed, the past clip they had much - 4 successful 2019-20 - was erstwhile Liverpool won the rubric instead.

You would person to spell backmost to 2015-16 - erstwhile Leicester claimed that fairytale triumph - to find the past clip a broadside won the Premier League with arsenic galore reddish cards arsenic Arsenal person now.

However, the Foxes were shown their 3 reddish cards crossed that full season.

Arsenal are already counting the cost, having dropped a full of 7 points pursuing those incidents - without which they could person made a cleanable commencement arsenic they question a archetypal league rubric for much than 20 years.

It is the archetypal clip since 2011-12 that Arsenal person had arsenic galore arsenic 3 players sent disconnected successful the opening 8 matches of a Premier League season.

Players getting sent disconnected has been an contented during Arteta's clip astatine Emirates Stadium.

Since helium took complaint connected Boxing Day 2019, the Gunners person been shown 18 reddish cards successful the Premier League, which is astatine slightest 5 much than immoderate different broadside during that time.

It is an contented helium has spoken astir before. In January 2022, aft 3 reddish cards successful 4 games that month, Arteta said: "We played [the] past 3 games with 10 men. When you bash that it's hard to triumph matches."

However, a mediocre disciplinary grounds did not clasp backmost Arsenal erstwhile they were managed by nine fable Arsene Wenger.

The Frenchman won the Premier League 3 times with the Gunners and connected each 3 occasions his broadside picked up astatine slightest 3 reddish cards. In 2001-02 they adjacent won the rubric contempt six dismissals successful that campaign.

A full of 78 reddish cards were shown successful 828 Premier League games nether Wenger.