Arsenal fans will have to wait a little longer to get a proper glimpse of summer signing Noni Madueke in a Gunners shirt, playing only 13 minutes against Villarreal in his unofficial debut.
Madueke’s £52 million (£69.5 million) arrival from Chelsea was announced as recently as July 18 and the player’s summer holiday was delayed by his involvement with his former club at the FIFA Club World Cup. He therefore wasn’t part of Arsenal’s Asian tour, but reported for training along with the rest of his new teammates on the first day back at London Colney.
Even having taken a personal trainer with him during his brief break, Madueke is a step behind others in the Arsenal squad, explaining his place among the substitutes on Wednesday night.
Mikel Arteta made a couple of changes at half-time and a swathe more just over an hour in, but it wasn’t until the 77th minute of the 3–2 defeat at the Emirates Stadium that Madueke got his chance.
The England international replace Gabriel Martinelli for the closing stages, with the final scoreline already in place at that stage of the game. There wasn’t really much time for him to do anything and it would be harsh to expect anything more in the circumstances of where he’s at with match fitness.
Statistically, Madueke was Arsenal’s joint worst player, registering a rating (per Fotmob) of just 5.9/10. The sole other player to score that low was Oleksandr Zinchenko, tellingly arriving in the game at the same late stage as Madueke did and also having minimal time to get up to speed.
Madueke touched the ball nine times in total, one of which came in the Villarreal penalty area, and completed all five of his attempted passes. One of his two attempted crosses found its mark, but there was no chance creation and defeat in his only duel.
Arsenal will face Athletic Club in 2025’s edition of the Emirates Cup on Saturday, where Madueke—along with others, like Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice, who didn’t start against Villarreal—stands a chance of playing a more meaningful chunk of the game.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Noni Madueke Fared on Arsenal Debut vs. Villarreal.