‘Really good guy’ Lee Carsley makes the right impression on Noni Madueke
The Chelsea winger could made his England debut against the Republic of Ireland in the Nations League.
Noni Madueke saluted “really good guy” Lee Carsley following his first senior call-up to the England squad.
The Chelsea winger has made a bright start to life under new boss Enzo Maresca and has four goals in four games throughout all competitions, including a hat-trick in a 6-2 Premier League win over Wolves last month.
On the back of those performances, Madueke received his first call-up to the camp at St George’s Park and could made his debut when they travel to the Republic of Ireland in the Nations League on Saturday.
Madueke and Carsley are no strangers to each other and have already shared success together, winning the European Under-21 Championship last summer.
The 22-year-old hailed the new England boss for his characteristics on and off the field.
Madueke told BBC Radio 5 Live: “First of all, he’s a great person. He’s a really good guy, and he’s very personable.
“He has a lot of human qualities that makes you feel good and at home.
“He’s also a great tactician. He has great ideas, and he’s also able to implement the way he wants to play in your mind and make it easy for you. I feel that the top managers all have that, and that’s a quality that he definitely has as well.
“I couldn’t speak more highly of him. He won the Euros with us.
“I feel like he’s a great manager – he knows the pathway, knows the system, knows the FA, he’s been working here for a long time, similar to Gareth (Southgate) in that sense.
“I hope he can do extremely well. I know I’ve got all the belief in him, for sure.”
Madueke was linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge this summer as Maresca continued his overhaul of the Chelsea squad.
The winger played 34 times under Mauricio Pochettino last season but with Chelsea’s incomings throughout the summer, Madueke would not have been blamed for thinking his place in the team was in jeopardy.
However, none of the rumours affected him. He added: “When you’re at a club like Chelsea and how it’s been recently, I think there’s always rumours and speculation but as a footballer you just have to go in every day and just do your job to the best of your ability. That’s really what I was focused on.
“I wasn’t really listening to too much about what was said about me – just focused on starting the season as well as possible. And thankfully, I’ve had a decent start.
“It was all just whispers and stuff. So I was just focusing on my football.”
