Chelsea winger Noni Madueke has apologized to Wolverhampton Wanderers for a misguided social media post on Sunday, but only after his 15-minute hat trick in a 6-2 thrashing had further aggravated the home side's frustrations. Madueke had shared a disparaging view about the Midlands city ahead of the Premier League match, which he later removed, yet the harm was already inflicted. The 22-year-old Londoner faced jeers from the home fans with every touch of the ball, but this did not hinder him as he scored three times in the early stages of the second half, propelling Chelsea ahead after the game had been evenly poised at 2-2 following an intense first half.
"I just want to apologize to anyone I may have upset," Madueke, one of nine players in Enzo Maresca's starting lineup aged 23 or under, stated. "It was a human error, an accident. It wasn't intended to be shared on my social media. I believe Wolverhampton is a nice town, and I am sorry. I anticipated the boos, but you must perform under pressure." Chelsea secured their first league points of the season in a dazzling manner, with Cole Palmer pivotal in a dynamic attacking performance—contributing assists to all of Madueke's goals.
Madueke highlighted the impact Italian Maresca has already made at Stamford Bridge since his arrival from Leicester City, whom he led back to the Premier League last season. "Everyone witnessed what he achieved at Leicester last year; he is meticulous about the details," Madueke commented. "Even in the first game against (Manchester) City, there were some promising patterns of play, but we just couldn't capitalize on them." Today is a great day, and I'm delighted he has secured his first Premier League win with Chelsea."
Maresca, who has a roster of approximately 40 players to shape into a competitive team, expressed his fortune in having such versatile players. "We need to be more precise. Our intentions are always good, but we must be more accurate if we aim to play the way we do," he remarked. "I am fortunate to have so many versatile players who can perform in various positions."
