Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has called out Noni Madueke to be ‘much better’ when afforded chances in the Blues starting lineup.
The west Londoners cruised to an emphatic 5-1 win at Southampton on Wednesday night to record their third Premier League victory in a row.
As it stands, Maresca’s side are just seven points off the top of the table after Liverpool dropped points against Newcastle United.
However, the Italian gaffer has singled out Madueke to continue performing to a higher standard. This despite the England forward getting on the scoresheet and providing an assist.
On Sunday, the 22-year-old was left out of the starting XI that comprehensively beat Aston Villa 3-0. Against the Villans, Madueke came on for the last 20 minutes.
The former PSV star set up Cole Palmer to help clinch the comfortable win. Nonetheless, Maresca insists that Madueke can keep improving.
Enzo Maresca Wants More From Noni Madueke
Across his 12 Premier League outings this season, Noni Madueke has registered five goals and two assists. He also netted in the Europa Conference League qualifier against Servette in August.
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca insists that when Madueke scores or has played well, his levels drop off somewhat. This is something the Italian wants to rid from his game.
“The moment he starts to score or assist and is happy, he starts to drop a little bit and the reason why he was not playing is because I do not like the way he trained,” he told Football.London.
“He has to understand that he has to train every day good. He has to be ambitious. He scored one tonight, he has to go for the second one and the third one. He has to give more assists.
“But overall, he is doing great, he is doing fantastic. He is doing even better in terms of numbers. Noni has to understand he has to work more because he can be much, much, much better.”
It remains to be seen if Madueke has done enough to afford a start against Tottenham on Sunday. Pedro Neto didn’t feature against Southampton which indicates Maresca will use him against Spurs.
Then it boils down to whether Jadon Sancho starts on the opposite flank over Madueke. The Manchester United loanne scored his first goal for the Blues after coming on as a late sub.
Ahead of the crunch London derby, the best football betting sites in the UK make Maresca’s side the slight 7/5 match favourites. The Liliwhites can be backed at 9/5 with the draw 35/12.
