Everything you need to know about England and Chelsea winger Noni Madueke!
Noni Madueke is an English professional football player who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for Chelsea and the England U21 side. He was born in London, England on March 10, 2002.
Madueke began his football career at Crystal Palace’s academy at the age of nine, before making a move to fellow London club Tottenham Hotspur at the age of 12. He played for Spurs’ U16 and U18 sides, even captaining the former, before making a switch to Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven in 2018.
After playing in PSV Eindhoven’s academy for two years, he made his debut for their senior team in 2020 during a 1-1 draw with VVV-Venlo. The 2020-21 season saw Madueke break into PSV’s first team and become a regular starter, ending with nine goals and eight assists in 32 games. The next campaign saw him again produce impressive performances, particularly an impressive display against rivals Ajax in the Johan Cruyff Shield.
As a result, he began gaining interest from bigger European clubs, and on January 20, 2023, Madueke completed a €35m move to Premier League giants Chelsea on a seven-and-a-half-year contract. While he hasn’t become a regular starter with the Blues, he has impressed in short spells and could make the breakthrough into the first team next season.
Madueke hasn’t yet earned a senior cap for the England national team, however, he has represented them at the U17, U18, and U21 levels. The Chelsea winger scored his first goal for the U21 side in a 4-0 friendly win over France.
Here are 13 fun facts about Noni Madueke you need to know.
- Early beginnings at Chelsea’s rivalsWhile he now plays for their London rivals Chelsea, Madueke had an early beginning to his football career with Crystal Palace at the age of nine, playing three years in their academy, before moving on to another of the Blues rival Tottenham Hotspur.
At Tottenham Hotspur, Madueke was quick to move through their youth levels, captaining the U16 side and representing the U18 side at the age of 15 years old. In 2018 he would leave Spurs to join PSV Eindhoven for more first-team opportunities.
- Nigerian heritageWhile Madueke was born and brought up in England and has also represented them at youth level, he also has Nigerian heritage running in his blood, inherited from his parents whose descent can be traced back to Nigeria.
In fact, he can still represent Nigeria since he doesn’t have a senior cap with England, and the African nation is interested in him representing them since his academy days.
- Used to be a central midfielderWhile Madueke has made a name for himself as one of the most exciting prospects on the wing currently in world football. During his academy days, he used to play as a central midfielder primarily. It was only at the age of 16 that the future Chelsea winger transitioned to playing as a part of the forward line.
Who knows maybe if Madueke decides to go back to being a central midfielder, Chelsea will find the creative outlet they have been lacking in the centre of the field!
GettyLooks up to Cristiano RonaldoWhen asked about the player he looks up to the most from childhood, Madueke like many other young footballers, named Manchester United legend and Al-Nassr ace Cristiano Ronaldo.
The English winger stated in an interview with Sky Sports that he adopted his attitude from Ronaldo and wants to be confident while also backing it up on the pitch with his performances like his idol.
Getty ImagesWants to be like PSG’s superstarsIn the above-mentioned interview, Madueke also stated that apart from Ronaldo he also looks up to his contemporaries PSG superstars Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
The Chelsea winger said that both Mbappe and Neymar hold the same attitude that he saw in Ronaldo and it’s the spirit one needs to adopt to be a successful winger in modern football.
- Supported Manchester United as a childMadueke’s fascination for Ronaldo developed due to him supporting Manchester United as a child and watching them week in and week out.
The former PSV Eindhoven winger would later play under the tutelage of another Manchester United legend in Ruud van Nistelrooy who was his coach during his PSV academy days.
- Rejected Manchester UnitedTherefore it’s a very big surprise that the Chelsea winger rejected the club he supported as a child when he was approached with a transfer proposal by them in 2018.
Madueke was looking to move away from Tottenham Hotspur for more first-team opportunities and felt that a move to Manchester United would have seen him go to the same situation he found himself in at Spurs.
Getty ImagesChelsea wanted to sign him much earlierOne of the other clubs who had offered Madueke a deal when he was moving away from Tottenham Hotspur were their rivals, Chelsea.
However, like Manchester United, the winger didn’t feel it was the right move back then. It took Chelsea another five years before they got him to Stamford Bridge.
- Scored in his first start for PSVIt didn’t take Madueke too long to adapt to life at PSV Eindhoven. During his breakthrough season with the club in 2020-21, the future Chelsea forward scored his first on his very first start against Emmen on September 19 2020, helping PSV win the game 2-1.
- Roger Schmidt made him a better playerMadueke has credited former PSV Eindhoven manager and current Benfica boss Roger Schmidt for making him a better footballer.
He said that Schmidt improved a lot of his off-the-ball work on the field, particularly pressing the opponents and winning the ball back immediately to start another attack, making him a more polished player than he was when he first made his senior team debut at PSV Eindhoven.
Getty ImagesMasterclass against AjaxMadueke truly announced himself to the world with an impressive display against PSV Eindhoven’s rivals Ajax in the Johan Cruyff Shield.
The English winger scored a brace in the 4-0 win against the Eredivisie giants, thus helping PSV Eindhoven win the cup, and stopping Ajax’s 17-game winning streak.
- Scored his first Chelsea goal against ArsenalIn an otherwise dismal display by Chelsea in their 3-1 loss against fierce rivals Arsenal this season, Madueke was the only positive, with his directness earning plaudits from pundits and supporters.
He summed up the display with a well-taken goal, reducing the deficit to two goals, and opening his account with Chelsea. Fans will hope this is one of the many times he finds the back of the net during his time with the Blues, particularly against Arsenal.
Getty ImagesHis favourite Chelsea player is HazardIn his first full interview with Chelsea, when asked who his favourite Blues player was, Madueke mentioned Stamford Bridge star Eden Hazard.
The English winger stated that there are similarities between him and the Belgian, but he has far to go before he reaches the level of Hazard at Chelsea.
