La Liga discipline

Reading the numbers

Elche top the La Liga discipline table with 40 cards, level with Villarreal. Celta Vigo follow on 38, so the gap from first to third is 2 cards.

The table lists 20 clubs and 516 cards in total. The top ten account for 64% of that output, while the median entry sits on 24 cards. No club manages more than one entry in the top ten, a sign of how evenly the work is spread.

Discipline here counts yellow and red cards collected by each club, with a red weighted heavier than a yellow because it costs the team a man. Cards are tactical as well as emotional: a side that commits deliberate fouls to stop counter-attacks will always sit near the top of this table. Read it next to possession and territory numbers to tell a cynical team from a careless one.

When comparing entries, remember that opportunity drives output. A club that has played more matches will naturally sit higher, so check the matches played column on the league table before drawing conclusions. Every figure on this page is recalculated after each round, so the order you see is the order after the most recent matchday in the La Liga.