“I didn’t leave Chelsea because of Enzo Maresca. I left because of this particular player. The way he treated me in the dressing room was unacceptable. If I’m to return, then he has to leave,” Noni Madueke has revealed, naming the ONE Chelsea player he wants gone before making his comeback
Noni Madueke squandered his first-ever professional penalty, leading Mikel Arteta to receive strong advice that the player should be prevented from taking spot-kicks in the future.
The England international was presented with a golden opportunity to extend Arsenal’s lead during their FA Cup clash against Portsmouth, but he failed to deliver when it mattered most.
The Gunners had initially fallen behind to the Championship side after Colby Bishop’s strike found the net within the opening three minutes of the match.
However, Arsenal fought back to equalize five minutes later through an unfortunate own-goal from Andre Dozzell, before Gabriel Martinelli stepped up to put the visitors ahead.
Madueke was handed a perfect chance to put the game beyond Portsmouth’s reach just before the half-time whistle, after being brought down inside the box by Zak Swanson.
The former Chelsea winger stepped up to take penalty duties in place of the absent Bukayo Saka and Viktor Gyökeres, but his effort failed to trouble the goalkeeper.
Despite his stuttering run-up successfully deceiving keeper Josef Bursik, Madueke’s weak attempt rolled harmlessly wide of the far post.
Speaking on talkSPORT, Dean Ashton didn’t hold back in his criticism: “He was just trying to be too clever, too precise when there was absolutely no need for it. Just take the penalty properly and confidently.
“It was such a great opportunity wasted. Because of his stuttering approach, he completely lost his balance, waiting far too long for Bursik to commit.
“He waited so long that he had to awkwardly jump to his right while falling away from the ball, which caused him to drag his shot past the post.
“The technique was absolutely awful when it came to actually striking the ball because he was completely off balance throughout.
“I genuinely hate watching penalties taken like that. What an absolute waste of a golden opportunity.”
When asked what advice he would give Madueke moving forward, Ashton responded bluntly: “Well, you certainly won’t be taking the next one. That’s probably the best advice I can give him.”
