Chelsea winger Noni Madueke has apologised after a social media post in which he insulted Wolverhampton.
Madueke’s Instagram post — which read, ‘Everything about this place is s***’, with a location tag of Wolverhampton — was swiftly deleted ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League game at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday.
The Englishman was then booed throughout the match at Molineux but went on to score a 14-minute hat-trick in the second half as Chelsea won 6-2.
“I just want to apologise to everyone that I might have offended,” Madueke, 22, told Premier League Productions after the game. “It is just a human mistake, an accident. It wasn’t meant to be out on my socials like that. I’m sure Wolverhampton is a nice town and I’m sorry.
“In terms of the boos I expected it but it is part of the game. You have to be able to play under that sort of pressure.”
He’s starting to like this place. #CFC | #WOLCHE pic.twitter.com/rVDurNiFMK
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 25, 2024
Madueke’s goals came after a first half that saw Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer score for Chelsea, with Matheus Cunha and Jorgen Strand Larsen netting for Wolves. Joao Felix, on as a substitute for Chelsea, scored the away side’s sixth goal following Madueke’s hat-trick.
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Asked about Madueke by the BBC, Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca said: “In the first 10 minutes, he had two chances and overall he was very good.
“The only thing I didn’t like from Noni is the free-kick he gave away before half-time and we can avoid that. Especially against a team who are good from set-pieces.”
On Palmer, who assisted all three of Madueke’s goals, the former PSV Eindhoven man added: “It is unbelievable. He is cold and I am fire so it mixes well.
“He has the ability to always play a pass at the right time. I like to get the ball in space, beat people and make things happen, so luckily today it worked.”
Chelsea return to action on Thursday for the away leg of their Conference League play-off against Swiss side Servette, holding a 2-0 lead from the first leg earlier this week. Wolves, meanwhile, host Burnley in the Carabao Cup second round on Wednesday.
(Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
