What Noni Madueke brings to Chelsea
Noni Madueke has officially joined Chelsea, with PSV Eindhoven agreeing to let the winger join the Premier League club for a fee in the region of £30m.
To say the English winger is an unknown quantity in his home country is an exaggeration - since trading Tottenham's academy for PSV in 2018, he's caught the eye in the Netherlands and has been linked with a number of Premier League sides.
However, injury issues and the rise of Cody Gakpo have meant that the 20-year-old has been very much out of the spotlight in Eindhoven in the past year or so.
Given that, many Chelsea fans won't be entirely sure what to expect from their new signing, so let's take a closer look...
- Chelsea sign Noni Madueke from PSV Eindhoven
- Noni Madueke discusses his 'similarities' to Chelsea legend
It's unclear just how often Madueke will play at Chelsea, but what is clear is where on the pitch he'll play when he does.
Since making his senior debut at the start of 2020, Madueke has been used almost exclusively as a right-winger at PSV and has developed into one of the best in the Netherlands in that position.
His stats, 20 goals and 14 assists in 80 appearances, aren't exactly spectacular, but they only tell half the story. He may not have had a huge amount of goal contributions, but he's created plenty of chances and caused defences numerous problems.
Being left-footed, he likes to pick up the ball out wide before cutting inside to wreak havoc in central areas; Chelsea fans may therefore think that he's similar to previous Eredivisie signing Hakim Ziyech and wonder why their club has spent so much to bring him in, but the two are very different players.
While Ziyech is a playmaker first and foremost who typically looks to send in a cross or play a defence-splitting through ball, Madueke prefers to run directly at the backline instead with his pace and dribbling being his finest assets.
In terms of style, Manchester United's Antony is a far better comparison than the Moroccan.
Given his differences with Ziyech and the fact that Chelsea don't have any other left-footed wingers, he undoubtedly offers Graham Potter a different option, but just how good he'll be is unclear.
Madueke is a hugely talented player, but one that's thus far been injury prone and somewhat inconsistent. The Englishman has missed almost 50 matches through injury since making his senior debut for PSV three years ago, encountering multiple muscle and ankle issues.
When he has been fit meanwhile, he hasn't produced the goods week in week out like former teammate Gakpo did for the club, often starting matches on the bench as a result. Of the 91 appearances he's made, 38 of them have come as a substitute.
A lack of consistency is partly down to his injuries though, which have often prevented him from finding match rhythm and building momentum. If he can stay fit, he could well develop into a top player, but that's far from a guarantee.
We've all been there on Football Manager: you stumble across a wonderkid with five-star potential, but your scouts tell you he's injury prone, his stats aren't anything special and he'll cost you a bomb.
The rational part of you knows that it's a risk that you probably shouldn't take, but you want to do it anyway. We've probably all given in to the temptation more times than we'd care to admit, and that's just what Chelsea have done with Madueke.
Listen now to Son of Chelsea, part of the 90min podcast network, as Daniel Childs reacts to Chelsea's potential clear-out of unwanted players, a new contract for Levi Colwill, more info on Mykhailo Mudryk's transfer and midfield January plans. If you can’t see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
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