Eden Hazard | "It's time to enjoy life drinking beers"

What's the view in Spain? Bale like attacks from the media? O.k he hasn't held up any Belgium first banners but coming back to pre season unfit after his injury ravaged first wasn't the most professional thing to do.

Still seems to me Hazard is held in much more esteem in world football even though they've had very similar careers on club and world stage so people find it harder to criticise Hazard when he's producing mediocre form.
 
Murder on Zidane's Floor said:
He was never, at any stage, the best player in the league.
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TheReligion said:
Was always overrated and never the very best in the world like CR or LM.
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This is something I agree with but I seldom voice it because people act like he was this all great conqueror of the premier league, when he never was. This is pretty much how I’ve always felt about the guy:

TsuWave said:
Hazard

maybe a bit harsh, but I always felt like Hazard was the most inconsistent supposed top player around
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duffer said:
We'll have to agree to disagree if you think they were all better than Hazard during his time at Chelsea.
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Hazard at his peak is a better player than Mane and Sterling, but I wouldn't choose him over Salah or a peak Alexis. I think that Hazards biggest problem was that he switched off. Sometimes he could be unplayable, and sometimes he could go weeks without scoring a goal. But yeah, Fergie probably should've approved that 6 million agent fee.
 
Hazard isn't and was never a numbers guy. But he was one of the few if maybe only player I would pay a ticket to watch live during his stint in England. There was a period of time when his dribbling was only 2nd to Messi. Those flashes of beating 3, 4 or even 5 defenders at ease were simply glorious to watch and he could turn defence into attack on the counter at the flick of a heel or a burst of acceleration before feeding someone else to get the glory. I agree with the above that I would take Mane and Salah over a season. But to watch, Eden Hazard was gravy.
 
Gringo said:
Hazard isn't and was never a numbers guy. But he was one of the few if maybe only player I would pay a ticket to watch live during his stint in England. There was a period of time when his dribbling was only 2nd to Messi. Those flashes of beating 3, 4 or even 5 defenders at ease were simply glorious to watch and he could turn defence into attack on the counter at the flick of a heel or a burst of acceleration before feeding someone else to get the glory. I agree with the above that I would take Mane and Salah over a season. But to watch, Eden Hazard was gravy.
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I take your overall point but hyperbole like this is amusing and hard to take seriously tbh
 
Sterling was never ever better than Hazard, the only wide forward who comes close in the last 10 years in the PL is 17/18 Salah and Bale.
 
kaiser1 said:
I agree with some of these, He was an attacking number who barely had the numbers to back him up. His goals and assists stats were not elite
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Maybe you don’t understand Hazards role as a footballer for a Chelsea, if you’re just looking at goals and assists them you miss the point.
 
TsuWave said:
This is something I agree with but I seldom voice it because people act like he was this all great conqueror of the premier league, when he never was. This is pretty much how I’ve always felt about the guy:
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He would not turn up for three of four games, then score a decent goal and people would rave.
 
Liver_bird said:
Made the move about 2-3 years too late.
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Agreed, I also think it’ll only further serve to steer Madrid/Barca away from the mega money signings of players in their later 20’s.

Think it was Carragher saying that he doubts they’ll go big for a Salah or Mane now considering their respective ages and the money Liverpool would likely demand.
 
Riz said:
Agreed, I also think it’ll only further serve to steer Madrid/Barca away from the mega money signings of players in their later 20’s.

Think it was Carragher saying that he doubts they’ll go big for a Salah or Mane now considering their respective ages and the money Liverpool would likely demand.
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They can only really sign those players as galaticos now though? Youre talking 200m odd if Madrid signs those players at 25
 
cyberman said:
They can only really sign those players as galaticos now though? Youre talking 200m odd if Madrid signs those players at 25
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For bona fide superstars I think what’s more likely is we’ll see increasing pressure on talent to insist on buy out clauses like Halaand or run their contracts down to a strong bargaining position, which I believe is what Mbappe and Neymar seem to be doing although I’m not so up to date on PSG matters.
 
Gringo said:
Hazard isn't and was never a numbers guy. But he was one of the few if maybe only player I would pay a ticket to watch live during his stint in England. There was a period of time when his dribbling was only 2nd to Messi. Those flashes of beating 3, 4 or even 5 defenders at ease were simply glorious to watch and he could turn defence into attack on the counter at the flick of a heel or a burst of acceleration before feeding someone else to get the glory. I agree with the above that I would take Mane and Salah over a season. But to watch, Eden Hazard was gravy.
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I'd agree with the bolded bit. At the moment that player would be Grealish. They are so similar in many ways. And I suspect Grealish will never be the star player at one of the biggest clubs either. So what.
 
Riz said:
For bona fide superstars I think what’s more likely is we’ll see increasing pressure on talent to insist on buy out clauses like Halaand or run their contracts down to a strong bargaining position, which I believe is what Mbappe and Neymar seem to be doing although I’m not so up to date on PSG matters.
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Just to join Madrid? I cant see it, plus it rules them out of joining every top club before Madrid which wouldn't make them a galatico anyway. (mostly)
 
The revisionism from some in this thread is hilarious. What is it with Chelsea players and revisionism in this place, first Kante, now Hazard, I wonder who's next.

After establishing himself as Chelsea's main man, he was always a top 3 player in the PL except for his horrible 2015/16 season. He was fairly average in the CL but he destroyed the PL and I would think Manutd fans of all people would be aware of that. In fact all the big teams as he always seemed to raise his game against the best in the league.

People always go on about his numbers but he was a hybrid of an attacking midfielder and a forward. The likes of Salah, Sterling, Son and Mane are all forwards so goal scoring is more important for their games. Also worth pointing out he played under fairly rigid systems with Mourinho, Conte and Sarri. Imagine if he got to play for Klopp, Pep or Pochettino.

As someone mentioned earlier, it will be interesting to see if the same people fawning in the Grealish thread are in here calling Hazard overrated.
 
Pagh Wraith said:
I'd agree with the bolded bit. At the moment that player would be Grealish. They are so similar in many ways. And I suspect Grealish will never be the star player at one of the biggest clubs either. So what.
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Indeed. Someone earlier said he was never at Messi or Ronaldo's level, as if anyone else has been recently.

You don't need to be a legit condender for the all time GOAT to be a great or elite player.

The modern trend of needing to break everything down into stats is so sterile and joyless. I blame that Brad Pitt film.
 
He was fantastic for Chelsea, he had one mediocre season and that's it.
 
Probably my favourite player outside of United in the PL during his Chelsea days. Brilliant carrier of the ball and expertly tight in crowded areas, so I can definitely see the Grealish comparisons on that front.
Would've been great had he stayed but you cant reject Madrid when they come calling I guess.
 
duffer said:
Indeed. Someone earlier said he was never at Messi or Ronaldo's level, as if anyone else has been recently.

You don't need to be a legit condender for the all time GOAT to be a great or elite player.

The modern trend of needing to break everything down into stats is so sterile and joyless. I blame that Brad Pitt film.
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Fight Club?
 
Meh, always found him a little overrated. Had moments of brilliance but was generally just a diving little gobshite.
Don't think he was ever a really exciting player like say, CR7 who would get you on your feet every time he picked the ball up.
He'd more likely get the ball, wait for somebody to come within 5 feet of him and do a superman impression.
 
I think it’s possible to think Hazard was a really good player, even have wanted him at United at some point, and also think that he wasn’t this all great conqueror of the league or that “he destroyed the PL”.

I don’t think those things are mutually exclusive.

When people say stuff like “he destroyed the league”, I think of Henry, Ronaldo, Yaya Toure (yes). I don’t think of Hazard
 
TsuWave said:
I think it’s possible to think Hazard was a really good player, even have wanted him at United at some point, and also think that he wasn’t this all great conqueror of the league or that “he destroyed the PL”.

I don’t think those things are mutually exclusive.

When people say stuff like “he destroyed the league”, I think of Henry, Ronaldo, Yaya Toure (yes). I don’t think of Hazard
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Yaya Toure
Premier League stats - 239 PL games, 59 goals and 35 assists
Team Honours - 3x PL, 1x FA Cup, 2x League Cup
Individual awards - 2x PFA team of the year, 1x Man City Player of the year

Eden Hazard
Premier League stats - 245 PL games, 85 goals and 61 assists
Team Honours - 2x PL, 1x FA Cup, 1x League Cup
Individual awards - 1x PFA player of the year, 4x PFA team of the year, 4x Chelsea Player of the year, 1x PFA Fans player of the year

Yaya was a hell of a player no doubt but I don't think he dominated the PL any more than Hazard did.

Hardly any reach the level of Ronaldo or Henry but in my view if you were making a team of the decade 2010-2020, Hazard would be one of the easiest entries IMO.
 
Gringo said:
Hazard isn't and was never a numbers guy. But he was one of the few if maybe only player I would pay a ticket to watch live during his stint in England. There was a period of time when his dribbling was only 2nd to Messi. Those flashes of beating 3, 4 or even 5 defenders at ease were simply glorious to watch and he could turn defence into attack on the counter at the flick of a heel or a burst of acceleration before feeding someone else to get the glory. I agree with the above that I would take Mane and Salah over a season. But to watch, Eden Hazard was gravy.
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I always thought his dribbling was decent but he was usually better at just drawing the foul then getting past loads of players. He shielded the ball better than anyone.
 
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If he can stay fit for few months, I think he still has it. He has had pretty bad luck with injuries since he moved to Spain. I always wonder why that happens - you move to a different league or even a different team and suddenly you have all sorts of injury issues.
 
Lord SInister said:
Money Ball.

Tbf he was much consistent than just three four games off and than one decent goal, and everyone raving about him type of consistent.
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He did have spells of good games but I remember clearly many games him being utterly anonymous, not just a few games but large swathes of games
 
Said these two things about him years ago. Still think I got it spot on. He's one of those players who flatters to deceive because he is full of tricks and looks good on the ball, but he lacks desire and he struggles to make an impact unless everything runs through him. I like Grealish but i worry he might be the same, minus the bit about desire.

11101 said:
Hazard has a long way to go to reach and maintain (Luis Figo's) level. He drifts in and out too much currently. He has also made the PL team of the year at a time of weakness for English football.
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11101 said:
He's an extremely talented player, one of the most talented, but best in the league? Nah, he plays for himself. He doesn't have enough influence over the game or his team on a consistent enough basis. Hes the sort of player who will be happy with his day when he scores in a 3-1 loss. I'm actually glad he didn't choose us all those years ago.
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El Jefe said:
Yaya Toure
Premier League stats - 239 PL games, 59 goals and 35 assists
Team Honours - 3x PL, 1x FA Cup, 2x League Cup
Individual awards - 2x PFA team of the year, 1x Man City Player of the year

Eden Hazard
Premier League stats - 245 PL games, 85 goals and 61 assists
Team Honours - 2x PL, 1x FA Cup, 1x League Cup
Individual awards - 1x PFA player of the year, 4x PFA team of the year, 4x Chelsea Player of the year, 1x PFA Fans player of the year

Yaya was a hell of a player no doubt but I don't think he dominated the PL any more than Hazard did.

Hardly any reach the level of Ronaldo or Henry but in my view if you were making a team of the decade 2010-2020, Hazard would be one of the easiest entries IMO.
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Why are you posting and comparing stats for a centre midfielder and that of a forward player? Are you ok? Yaya is arguably City's most important player and kick started their dominance, and it's no secret to that forward players are favoured in terms of awards. It is what it is.

Also, me adding "(yes)" next to Yaya's name should tell you I expect some folks to contest how I regard him, out of the names I mentioned. Regardless, Hazard cannot hang for me.
 
Murder on Zidane's Floor said:
He did have spells of good games but I remember clearly many games him being utterly anonymous, not just a few games but large swathes of games
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Outside of 15/16 when he was injured, this is just categorically false. He was so much better than any other player for us that the attention he drew allowed mediocre teammates to perform (e.g. Willian).

In many ways his time at Chelsea can be viewed as somewhat unfortunate - he had the benefit of playing alongside a grand total of one top class attacker during his 7 years, and even then that top class attacker was an absolutely insane head case who derailed one season and came very close to derailing a second. The utter dearth of attacking talent alongside him meant Hazard could be double or triple marked with regularity. If we'd kept Salah, Lukaku, and KdB along with Hazard his numbers would have been far far better.
 
In his best 2-3 seasons for Chelsea, he was for sure one of the top players in the league, and arguably the best, in my opinion.
The fact that he is now a cripple doesnt change that fact.

Not everything can be measured in goals, and his combine output for goals and assists wasn`t bad anyway, and in terms of playmaking and creating chances he was good too.
 
Murder on Zidane's Floor said:
He did have spells of good games but I remember clearly many games him being utterly anonymous, not just a few games but large swathes of games
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This is my way of thinking as well. He held onto the ball for far too long imo, its not a coincidence that all of the strikers who played alongside him would go loooong spells without a goal.
He turns you into a set piece side with his obsession about winning freekicks.
 
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