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

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.

As noted by The Times, Chelsea cannot register new players for next season’s Champions League squad unless they balance out the squad costs from “List A”, which is the last squad registered with UEFA for the second half of the Conference League campaign. The rule means any spending on new players must be balanced out by income from sales.

Arsenal have reached an agreement to sign Noni Madueke in the current transfer window, with the winger leaving Chelsea’s American base to return to England and finalise the deal.

Chelsea took a huge step closer to selling winger Noni Madueke to Arsenal over the weekend when the likes of Fabrizio Romano revealed that the Gunners had agreed personal terms with the winger.Now