Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and more: Chelsea star Noni Madueke names his all time favorite XI

Chelsea forward Noni Madueke has included Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in his all time favourite XI. The Englishman recently sat down with the Blues' media team to chalk out a starting XI comprising some of his favorite players.

Unsurprisingly, four former Chelsea players made the cut. Madueke started with Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer in between the sticks, while he opted for Real Madrid legend Sergio Ramos in the right-back position.

Thiago Silva and Virgil van Dijk formed a rock-solid centerback pairing, while Ashley Cole was stationed at left-back. N'Golo Kante and Frank Lampard were selected in the middle of the park, while Madueke opted for Lionel Messi as the attacking midfielder.

The front three comprised of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe on either side of Cristiano Ronaldo. Thiago Silva, who Madueke shared the pitch with at Stamford Bridge, was handed the armband.

Speaking to the club's website, the 23-year-old outlined why he opted for the Brazilian to lead the team.

“My captain would be Thiago Silva. He is a great leader, super passionate about the game. Not everyone has this, but he has a way of motivating you. Of course, he leads by example, but even though he didn’t speak much English he had an aura about him which motivated you to give your absolute best,” said Madueke.

Madueke's future at Chelsea remains uncertain this summer, with Napoli apparently eyeing him with interest.

Did Carlo Tevez snub Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to name Wayne Rooney as his favorite teammate?

Carlos Tevez once named Wayne Rooney as his favorite teammate ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Speaking in 2009, as per The Mirror, Tevez insisted that the Englishman was a complete player.

"I’ve had the honour of playing with some great players. At United, I had Cristiano in my team and obviously, I have Messi in the national team. At Boca Juniors I had striker Martin Palermo for a teammate – he was very impressive. He was the one who put two goals past Real Madrid in Japan," said Tevez.

He continued:

"But the one I like the most is Rooney. He has everything. He’s very complete. Plus we share the same humble origins."

Cristiano Ronaldo's contract with Al-Nassr expires at the end of this month. Interestingly, Lionel Messi is about to enter the final six months of his contract with Inter Miami as well.

About the author

Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written more than 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered over 20 million reads.

Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.

Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.

Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.

Know More

Edited by Deepungsu Pandit