Real Madrid still “expect a lot” from Eden Hazard, who arrived at the club from Chelsea in 2019 for over £100 million. According to Fabrizio Romano, Hazard has made his opinion clear about needing more minutes, but for now, the player has a contract to fulfil and Romano seems to think the player is trying to ‘send a message’ to get himself more time on the pitch.
Fabrizio Romano Downplays Eden Hazard’s Outcry for More Game Time
Is Hazard Unhappy at Real Madrid?
This is what Romano said about Hazard’s current feelings about his time at Real Madrid:
“Eden Hazard has spoken about wanting to play more, but does it mean he’s looking for a move? Not necessarily.”
Romano goes on to say that Real Madrid “expect a lot from Hazard this season”.
But while the player has declared that he is unhappy, Romano says he thinks “Hazard wanted to send a message as he wants to play more, but there’s nothing imminent with any other club as of now, we’ll see in 2023.”
Sometimes the only way to really ascertain if a player is happy at a club is to ask him directly. Marca interviewed Hazard just after Belgium beat Wales 2-1 in the UEFA Nations League. Hazard started and played 65 minutes, before being withdrawn for Brighton & Hove Albion’s Leandro Trossard.
Hazard said (translated from the Spanish): “There have been difficult times because I want to play and I don’t play. I feel good at Real Madrid, I just play less. And when I play, I play well. It’s a delicate situation because I want to play more.”
So while this message is fairly ambiguous it is clear that Hazard wants to play more football at Real Madrid. He is happy to play for the club but it is ‘difficult’ when he is not called upon.
Things have all gone a bit downhill for Hazard since his glory days at Chelsea. At the Blues, he scored 110 goals and picked up 92 assists across 352 appearances. This makes his goal contribution roughly 0.57 per match.
Past his prime, struggling with confidence, form as well as long-term injuries (including surgery on his ankle back in March) Hazard’s goal contribution has unsurprisingly plummeted. It’s now roughly 0.26 per match, with a total of seven goals to his name for Real Madrid since joining. Now 31, Hazard is slowly returning to full match fitness and playing for club and country.
His latest words seem to suggest that he is really determined to play more often for Real Madrid. After all, he has only started one match this season, and even then he was withdrawn early against RCD Mallorca. Otherwise, the player has only made two substitute appearances at the very start of La Liga, finding himself on the bench for three out of the six matchdays thus far. For a player of his quality, it is not such a shock that he is demanding more of a chance from manager Carlo Ancelotti.
What Does Ancelotti Have To Say About Hazard?
At the moment Hazard is firmly behind the likes of Vinicus Jr in the starting eleven. Even players like Rodrygo and Marco Asensio, who seemed destined to leave this summer, have started in his place. So what does the manager think about Hazard?
Ancelotti’s latest words on Hazard suggest that very little is wrong. He said: “He’s not touched [injured], he’s working well. Three games aren’t enough for an evaluation. I’m sure he’s going to play an important role this season.”
Eden Hazard on his moment at Real Madrid: “It’s a delicate situation as I want to play more. I feel good at Real Madrid, yes — but I know what I can do when I play”. ⚪️ #RealMadrid
“There’ve been difficult times when I want to play and… I don’t play”, quotes via @marca. pic.twitter.com/uyM6zgbz45
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 22, 2022
