Noni Madueke believes Chelsea have finally found answers to the goalscoring problems that plagued them last season.
The England Under-21 international came off the bench to fire Mauricio Pochettino’s side to a 2-1 win at home against Crystal Palace on Wednesday, slotting the winner from the penalty spot in the 89th minute after being fouled by Eberechi Eze. Earlier Michael Olise, who nearly became a Chelsea player in the summer, had equalised on the stroke of half-time after the hosts had failed to build on Mykhailo Mudryk’s 13th-minute opener.
There were chances for Mudryk, Nicolas Jackson and Ian Maatsen on his first start to add to the hosts’ tally but a combination of wayward finishing and the Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson kept Roy Hodgson’s side in it, until Madueke’s late intervention.
Chelsea scored only 38 Premier League goals last season, their lowest in the league in almost a century, but already have 31 at the halfway stage this time.
They have been boosted by the return to fitness of Christopher Nkunku, the Bundesliga’s top-scorer last season, who made a full debut against Palace and was a threat in the No 10 role. Madueke feels confident that a corner has been turned.
“We play good football and are scoring goals now,” the 21-year-old said. “I remember last season we weren’t scoring those goals. We’re probably conceding a few too many, but I just feel it’s that consistency we need to get down. Once we do, we’ll be a really good team.
“We’ve had some very good performances this season where we haven’t got the rub of the green. It’s a process and where we are now will not define us come the end of the season.”
It was Chelsea’s third league win in a row at home and their fourth in all competitions, though that run has been cut with a run of four consecutive away defeats. It is their longest sequence of victories at Stamford Bridge since October 2022 and lifted them back into the top half of the table.
“[This] was a must-win game,” Madueke said. “There have been similar games in the season that we should have won and haven’t quite got the rub of the green, so I’m happy we’ve done the business and got the three points.”
Madueke also reflected on his impact from the bench having been handed just his eighth league appearance or the season, of which only one has been from the start.
“It’s been a stop-start campaign for me. I’ve had little niggles, little injuries, things that haven’t quite gone my way. I’m happy to have an impact off the bench [against Palace] and whether I start the next game or have the same impact off the bench is up to the manager.”
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December 28, 2023 at 11:18PM
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Noni Madueke believes the goals will flow for improving Chelsea - The Guardian
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