Noni Madueke's Arsenal Debut: Breaking Down His Performance Against Villarreal
Arsenal supporters must exercise patience before witnessing a comprehensive display from summer acquisition Noni Madueke in the club's colors, as he featured for merely 13 minutes against Villarreal in his unofficial first appearance.
The £52 million (£69.5 million) transfer from Chelsea was confirmed on July 18, with Madueke's vacation postponed due to his participation in the FIFA Club World Cup with his previous team. Consequently, he missed Arsenal's Asian tour but joined his new colleagues for training on their initial day back at London Colney.
Despite bringing a personal fitness coach during his short break, Madueke remains behind his Arsenal teammates in terms of preparation, which accounts for his substitute role on Wednesday evening.
Mikel Arteta implemented several substitutions at the interval and made additional changes after the hour mark, but Madueke didn't enter the action until the 77th minute of the 3–2 loss at the Emirates Stadium.
The England player substituted Gabriel Martinelli for the final moments, with the match result already determined by that point. Given the limited time available and his current fitness level, expecting significant contributions would be unreasonable.
From a statistical perspective, Madueke shared the lowest performance rating among Arsenal players, earning just 5.9/10 according to Fotmob. Oleksandr Zinchenko was the only other player to receive such a low score, notably also entering the match at the same late stage as Madueke with similarly restricted time to make an impact.
Madueke registered nine ball touches overall, including one within Villarreal's penalty box, and successfully completed all five pass attempts. While one of his two crossing attempts reached its intended target, he created no scoring opportunities and lost his single contested duel.
Arsenal will meet Athletic Club in Saturday's 2025 Emirates Cup fixture, where Madueke—alongside others such as Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice, who didn't start against Villarreal—may receive a more substantial playing opportunity.