Chelsea winger Noni Madueke has opened up about his experience of visiting Nigeria with his parents when he was young and what he enjoyed about the trips to Africa.
Madueke was born in London, England, to Nigerian Igbo parents. He is one of the many English players of Nigerian descent playing in the Premier League.
He came through the ranks of multiple academies in London and spent time in the Dutch Eredivisie, before returning to England with Chelsea in the winter window of 2023.
Madueke recounts visiting Nigeria
Speaking to Chelsea TV on his episode of My Journey, the former PSV Eindhoven winger has spoken about his parents and what they taught him.
“My parents both came to England when they were young, did school here and met here. They have good values and good morals. They try to be good people. They definitely imprinted that one on me,” he said.
The 22-year-old also spoke about his experience of visiting Nigeria during his childhood days and what he enjoyed about it.
“I loved going to Nigeria when I was younger. We would fly to Lagos and then get a boat to Banana Island or Lekki Phase 1. We would just go there and chill. It was cool,” he added.
As noted by BBC Sports, despite his strong Nigerian roots, the former Tottenham Hotspur academy star has represented England at all youth levels and won the U21 Euro in 2023.
He chose to represent the Three Lions internationally and made his debut on September 10 in the 2-0 win over Finland, replacing fellow English-born Nigerian-descent star Bukayo Saka.
Madueke has played under four managers since moving to Chelsea — Graham Potter, Frank Lampard, Mauricio Pochettino and currently Enzo Maresca.
He has played his best football under Maresca, scoring his first hat trick earlier this season in that 6-3 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers after insulting the city before the match.
He credited his passion for football to his early love for the game and how his family was crazy about football.
“I always had a mad love of the game. I was a football fanatic. I used to play by myself all the time, just run around, kick it against a wall, shoot against walls in my street or the backyard,” he said.
“My whole family is football crazy. My dad is a Man United fan, and my brother is Chelsea, so there was a bit of conflict in the house growing up! It was cool.”
Enzo Maresca calls out Madueke
Legit.ng previously reported that Enzo Maresca called out Madueke despite the winger scoring for Chelsea against Southampton in the Premier League in September.
Maresca spoke in a usual voice to the player that he needs to do better despite his goal, a message that Chelsea legend Gus Poyet echoed to the player.
