Rio Ferdinand has leapt to the defence of Noni Madueke amid the huge backlash to his potential transfer from Chelsea to Arsenal as some Gunners fans begin a petition against the move

Enzo Maresca has confirmed nobody told Noni Madueke he had to leave Chelsea, and he decided he wanted to leave the club.Madueke is set to complete a move to rivals Arsenal for a fee of £52m after

Manchester United Champions League winner Rio Ferdinand has blasted Arsenal fans rallying to protest against the signing of Noni Madueke.

Arsenal are close to finalising a £50 million deal with Chelsea for the transfer of winger Noni Madueke, who is now on the brink of becoming the seventh player to move from Stamford Bridge to the Emirates Stadium in the past six years.

Chelsea are interested in Ethan Nwaneri, Max Dowman and Morgan Rogers, and could offload Nicolas Jackson as prepare to step up a mass summer-clear out of unwanted players. Manchester United are being linked with Jackson as they look to finally wrap up the signing of Bryan Mbeumo.

Getting a deal for Viktor Gyokeres over the line would make this a dream summer transfer window for Arsenal fans. That’s according to a Gunners double title-winner who admits, though, that their

Eberechi Eze is looking set to join Noni Madueke at Arsenal this summer after Crystal Palace suffered a fresh blow to their chances of keeping hold of their star man.

All that said, the story we’re going with in Madueke’s case is the he wanted to leave the club. Enzo Maresca planted this seed the other week, and harvested its juicy narrative fruit in Friday’s press conference.