In his second season at Chelsea, Eden Hazard is showing why he was hailed by Europe as a wonder kid, winning the 2014 PFA Young Player of the Year award. Beating some of the best talents in the Premier League such as Daniel Sturridge and Luke Shaw who finished second and third respectively, Hazard is justifying the large price tag that Chelsea forked out for him. At the tender age of 23, there is still much more to come from the Belgian international.
Eden Hazard has quickly established himself as a key player at Stamford Bridge and is one of the first names on Jose Mourinho’s team sheet. Hazard’s electric acceleration, flair filled dribbling and creativity has earned him the name as one of the most deadliest attackers in Europe, let alone England. It is these qualities that have aided him in scoring 14 goals and assisting 7.
Since Mourinho’s arrival however, Eden Hazard’s all round game has come on leaps and bounds thanks to the “Special One.” In his debut season, many could see the talent that Hazard had, but defensively he was poor and his work rate at times was questionable, often leaving the left back behind him isolated as the opposition launched a counter attack. Under Mourinho, a manager who demands all his players contribute defensively has pushed Hazard to better himself as a player and add defensive qualities to his game as well turning him into one of the hardest workers in the squad.
With the World Cup fast approaching, Eden Hazard will be showcasing his abilities on the biggest stage in world football with Belgium. Part of a team that features the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Vincent Kompany and Thibaut Courtios, they could well be the dark horses of the tournament and go quite far. With Hazard ever impressive both nationally and domestically, he has attracted quite a few admirers in the form of PSG and Real Madrid who have been reported as weighing up huge offers to bring in Hazard.
With the media often suggesting Eden Hazard has the potential to emulate the sort of feats that Lionel Messi and Cristano Ronaldo are currently doing, there are a number of reasons why these comparisons are not totally ungrounded. With Mourinho’s guidance, Hazard could well develop into one of the best players on the planet and Mourinho himself has set this goal for Hazard. Mourinho has previously said: “I want to give him that responsibility and ambition for the kid to be better and better and to express himself on the pitch match after match. Don’t be up and down but to always be at the top of his game because he has the conditions to be a top player.”
Hazard’s admirers don’t just end at Mourinho. At Lille, Eden Hazard received probably one of the greatest compliments from one of the true greats of the game. A certain Zinedine Zidane once said: “I would take him to Real Madrid with my eyes closed.” Mourinho placed most of his creative faith in Oscar and Hazard at the start of the season and following the sales of Juan Mata and Kevin De Bruyne the faith in the duo grew greater. Arguably Oscar’s form has dipped of late with suggestions that the Brazilian is suffering from fatigue having lacked a real summer break, which has meant the burden has been placed mostly on Eden Hazard and he has duly delivered even with such a responsibility.
Eden Hazard is constantly improving and adapting his game to better himself under Mourinho. If this growth continues, Chelsea could well see him fledge into one of the best players in the world. The PFA Young Player of the Year award will be a great compliment to the Belgian but leaves many asking, how long will it be before Hazard is vying for even greater individual awards such as the Ballon d’Or?
