One of the main problems Liam Rosenior must solve at Chelsea is a clear lack of discipline, and one of the main culprits is Pedro Neto. Overnight, Portugal winger Neto was involved in another incident.
This season, Neto has picked up five yellow cards and one red card. Some would say that isn’t unusual, but Chelsea have more red cards than any other Premier League side, by some margin ahead of the rest.
It is affecting results. Chelsea have had to deal with going down to 10 men more often than they should have and Neto is a big part of the lack of discipline and poor attitude dogging Rosenior’s side.
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It’s not just his red card against Arsenal, which was atrocious. It was pushing a ball boy over in the first leg against PSG. Neto is quickly becoming a hothead, and his Chelsea form is hardly making it worth it.
Pedro Neto lucky to escape red card during Portugal incident
Going into the break, Neto picked up a shocking red card for dissent and a tackle on Gabriel Martinelli and then risked a UEFA ban for pushing over a PSG ballboy. Early this morning, he got very lucky.
Mexico v Portugal - International Friendly
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Portugal played out a 0-0 draw with Mexico in the early hours of Sunday morning, with Neto entering the fray at half-time. Seven minutes later, Neto picked up a yellow card and was lucky not to get a red.
Indeed, it probably would have been a red had it not been a friendly. After a challenge with Toluca star Jesus Gallardo, the two locked heads in an altercation that saw Neto lose his head over hardly anything.
Neto reacted badly to what was a late bit of contact from Gallardo, albeit minimal. The aggressor, Neto, pushed Gallardo and then attempted to get the Toluca defender in a headlock. A red card, normally.
PROVE ME WRONG: Pedro Neto is becoming a liability and he must be sold 😡
The Arsenal red card, the ballboy, and now this!
Chelsea need to sell Pedro Neto before it is too late
There is no doubting that of Chelsea’s four wingers, excluding Cole Palmer, when all are firing, Neto is the one to provide the most impact. But is he really worth keeping when he’s one moment away from a red?
Neto is good and has shown glimpses since his move from Wolves. But the £54m signing has failed to provide any level of consistency, and this lack of discipline is beginning to creep into his game of late.
Chelsea are set to welcome Geovany Quenda to the club this summer, from Sporting Lisbon. Quenda is the ninth-best wonderkid in world football. Palmer is currently being used as a right-sided winger.
So, is Neto worth keeping this summer? Is his form outweighing his lack of discipline? Or is he becoming a liability and do Chelsea need to sell? As things stand, the latter seems to be the winning argument.
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