"Manchester United and Chelsea made offers" - Noni Madueke makes transfer admission and sheds light on 'idol' Cristiano Ronaldo's role in his career

PSV Eindhoven star Noni Madueke has confirmed he rejected offers from Chelsea and Manchester United in the summer of 2018. The Englishman revealed he wanted to develop at the Dutch side before moving back to England.

Madueke began his career at Tottenham Hotspur and rose through the ranks of their academy before joining PSV in 2018.

Chelsea and Manchester United were also interested in signing Madueke three years ago, butcould not lure him in as he was not guaranteed game time at either Premier League side.

The 19-year-old revealed that he picked PSV as his ideal destination after visiting their training ground. He insisted he made the right decision despite receiving offers from several top European clubs.

"Chelsea, Manchester United, a lot of European clubs [made offers]. I came here one time and as soon as I came I wanted to sign straight away. I knew going from Tottenham to United is pretty much the same thing," he told BBC. "The reason I wanted to go was to progress quicker into the first team. PSV is a top European club. It made so much sense at the time and it makes sense now."

Speaking about his time at the club, the young winger praised Ruud van Nistelrooy for aiding his development when he was at Jong PSV – the Dutch side's B team.

"Ruud helped me a lot. I was with him almost two years, from when I came until I went to the first team," Madueke said. "I sponged off him and I learned a lot of things."

Borussia Dortmund were reportedly keen on signing Madueke this summer as a replacement for Jadon Sancho. However, a deal for the former Tottenham starlet did not materialize and they ended up getting Donyell Malen.

Chelsea target Noni Madueke names Cristiano Ronaldo as his idol

Noni Madueke has named Cristiano Ronaldo as the player who made him fall in love with football. The Englishman said the Portuguese star was his idol and that he wanted to follow in the Manchester United attacker's footsteps.

"The person that made me want to play football was Cristiano Ronaldo when he was playing for Manchester United. He was my idol. I grew up watching him."

Madueke has so far made 52 appearances for PSV in all competitions, scoring 15 goals and providing nine assists.