“Mad” – Rio Ferdinand hits out at Enzo Maresca’s handling of Chelsea star | OneFootball

Former Manchester United star Rio Ferdinand has hit out at Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca for letting Noni Madueke off the hook for his behaviour when he was subbed off against Arsenal.

Madueke appeared visibly annoyed as he left the pitch, walking down the tunnel instead of taking his place on the bench to follow the rest of the game.

Although the England international has been having a fine season for Chelsea, there’s no excusing unprofessional behaviour like that, and Ferdinand was left thoroughly unimpressed.

The Man Utd legend would never have put up with that kind of thing from his teammates, and he also made it clear that Sir Alex Ferguson wouldn’t tolerate it.

Ferdinand thinks Maresca should be tougher with Madueke and fine him, and admitted he found it ‘mad’ that the Italian tactician was instead coming out to cover for the player when he was asked about it after the game.

Noni Madueke in action for Chelsea (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Rio Ferdinand hits out at Enzo Maresca and Noni Madueke

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ferdinand said: “You think (Danny) Welbeck or Tom Cleverly or Nani are going to storm off the pitch and throw their dummy out?

“It’s disrespectful to your teammates as well.

“It’s a young team. Who are the experienced players who are going to go in there and say, ‘Woah, we don’t accept that here’.

“And I understand his thinking but at the same time, I don’t understand why you are doing that.”

He added: “That’s where the manager comes in. I think the manager protecting him is mad.

“And that’s why I couldn’t be in there [as a manager] because I couldn’t come out and play the game where you say, ‘Yeah he was in the wrong but [he’s a good kid]’. Fined, that’s a two-week fine.”

Where do you stand on Maresca’s handling of the Madueke issue? Let us know in the comments!