🇧🇪 Eden Hazard

[Vesper 30,172]

If we wanna keep Eden, (and even if we dont end up keeping, in fact even MORE important if we lose him) we best start benching Alonso and BUY CHILWELL (I am convinced on him, the HG thing tips it to dead even with Firpo, as we do (or will) have HG issues)

Only player Eden went truly out of way congratulate was Ben

and we all know he wants Alonso benched, per those new articles

[!Hazard! 3,394]

2 minutes ago, Vesper said:

If we wanna keep Eden, (and even if we dont end up keeping, in fact even MORE important if we lose him) we best start benching Alonso and BUY CHILWELL (I am convinced on him, the HG thing tips it to dead even with Firpo, as we do (or will) have HG issues)

Only player Eden went truly out of way congratulate was Ben

and we all know he wants Alonso benched, per those new articles

YESS LET'S GO GET CHILWELL!!

[Jase 43,479]

4 minutes ago, Vesper said:

If we wanna keep Eden, (and even if we dont end up keeping, in fact even MORE important if we lose him) we best start benching Alonso and BUY CHILWELL (I am convinced on him, the HG thing tips it to dead even with Firpo, as we do (or will) have HG issues)

Only player Eden went truly out of way congratulate was Ben

and we all know he wants Alonso benched, per those new articles

Christ! Aren't you people reading too much into a picture?  

[OneMoSalah 8,886]

Just now, Jason said:

Christ! Aren't you people reading too much into a picture?  

Quite hilarious how carried away people are getting. We arent buying a LB without selling one...

[Vesper 30,172]

11 minutes ago, OneMoSalah said:

Quite hilarious how carried away people are getting. We arent buying a LB without selling one...

Alonso, after striker, and maybe Willian (I say no) is the biggest structural weak point on the team. He was okay as a wingback. Wingback is not an option. All the best teams have dominant fullback play. Look at Shitty. Mendy goes down and the wheels come off (I do admit Fernandinho is a huge part too). Barca, Liverpool, Juve, Real the past 5 years (again, Marcelo has been shit so far this year, and has really hurt them) Bayern (injuries have forced thier hand at fullback to rheir great troubles) all, when at best form all have superb fullback play.

We do not have anywhere near it.

[OneMoSalah 8,886]

4 minutes ago, Vesper said:

Alonso, after striker, and maybe Willian (I say no) the biggest structural weak point on the team. He was okay as a wingback. Wingback is not an option. All the best teams have dominant fullback play. Look at Shitty. Mendy goes down and the wheels come off (I do admit Fernandinho is a huge part too). Barca, Liverpool, Juve, Real the past 5 years (again, Marcelo has been shit so far this year, and has really hurt them) Bayern (injuries have forced thier hand at fullback to rheir great troubles) all, when at best form all have superb fullback play.

We do not have anywhere near it.

And you think we are going to sign a left back when we signed 2 in the last 2 years first and foremost? No chance.

CF is the biggest issue, Hazard is nowhere near as influential as a false 9 than he is at left wing. A good striker that can bring goals and get Hazard back to his nautral position is first priority. Even then in defence that whole left side can be gotten at, Luiz at LCB and Alonso at LB.

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

Would be still possible ronhet rid of alonso for some.money as the footballing world has not entirely figured out what a fraud he is

[Vesper 30,172]

2 minutes ago, OneMoSalah said:

And you think we are going to sign a left back when we signed 2 in the last 2 years first and foremost? No chance.

CF is the biggest issue, Hazard is nowhere near as influential as a false 9 than he is at left wing. A good striker that can bring goals and get Hazard back to his nautral position is first priority. Even then in defence that whole left side can be gotten at, Luiz at LCB and Alonso at LB.

I think Rudiger plays more on the left at CB than Luiz. I did say AFTER CF btw. But it is a large issue. If Emerson is so poor he cannot even come close to benching Alonso, then he needs to be sold.

We will never win trophies to any significant degree with Alonso playing as a trad LB. I will be shocked if we win the EL or FA Cup or even the Carabao Cup with him there. He is simply nowhere near the class of player we need on the left.

[Vesper 30,172]

4 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

Would be still possible ronhet rid of alonso for some.money as the footballing world has not entirely figured out what a fraud he is

I think Real still wants him. We were crazy to not take their £45m this summer. Some on here said we should hold out for £55 or even £60m!.

Chilwell will cost £50m, Firpo 45m. If we sell Alonso for even only that £45m, that's only a £5m net spend for Chilwell, and even break for Firpo, for a huge upgrade (and those are both 5,6 years younger too)

LB and RW (because they both are left-footed positions) are hard as fuck to find great quality for, far harder than RB and LW, simply as left-footed athletes are far rarer than right-footed. Rarest of all are ambipedals, they are gold if they are also great footballers.

[DDA 9,938]

“101 goals with this amazing club is something I will never forget. Now me, the fans and this club want more. I will try to be a legend like Terry, Drogba and Lampard."

- Eden Hazard to Sky Sports 

[Unionjack 7,531]

4 hours ago, DDA said:

“101 goals with this amazing club is something I will never forget. Now me, the fans and this club want more. I will try to be a legend like Terry, Drogba and Lampard."

- Eden Hazard to Sky Sports 

“We showed great character against Manchester City after losing to Wolves and today we did the same. We lost three days ago against Leicester and we needed to respond on the pitch and we did well. When we can fight together we are a top team so we need to do it more often.”

What I dont get is WHY cant Eden play like tonight all the time?

He played like a proper leader! You could see that he was totally up for the job and lead by example. MAYBE it was because he had made his mind up and decided to stay??

Lets just hope it wasn't a spur of the moment comment that he got caught up in the interview and he has finally got that fence post out of his arse and told the club hes staying!

Its will be then down to our sodding board to rebuild the majority of this team and give him some team mates of an equal standard!

[DDA 9,938]

43 minutes ago, Unionjack said:

Its then down to our sodding board to rebuild the majority of this team and give him some team mates of an equal standard!

Honestly mate, I have lost all faith in our board. I literally do not know what to expect from one transfer window to the next. It's hit and miss every season.

[Unionjack 7,531]

1 minute ago, DDA said:

Honestly mate, I have lost all faith in our board. I literally do not know what to expect from one transfer window to the next. It's hit and miss every season.

I feel the same bud

But we know that we do still have that ability to pay up for players we want.

We just need to do it more often and get in quicker. But till we have a real DOF I cant see that happening.

[pHaRaOn 2,131]

 

[BlueLion. 21,491]

Super performance from him yesterday, I wish he could show the consistency to play like that more frequently. For me, it isn't about him scoring every game to make him a quality player - it is about consistency across 90 minutes. He was awesome from start to finish yesterday; comfortably his best performance of the season as far as I'm concerned.

I do hope Sarri is just playing him as a forward to make a point to the board... "Hey look, my strikers are shit so I'll play Hazard here unless you get me another striker in January". I don't see his long-term future as a CF, however he CAN do a job there away against teams that aren't scared of actually coming out to play football. Against teams that park the bus, it's a total waste of Hazard, IMO. 

Either way, well played and well done on 100 (well, 101!) goals, Eden. I like to be proved wrong, but to properly convince me he needs to do it in the next game, and the game after that, and so on. Not every game, because I accept he's human, but if he is truly world class then we should be seeing performances of that ilk on a more frequent basis, in my view!!

[Stats 7,142]

1 hour ago, BlueLion. said:

Super performance from him yesterday, I wish he could show the consistency to play like that more frequently. For me, it isn't about him scoring every game to make him a quality player - it is about consistency across 90 minutes. He was awesome from start to finish yesterday; comfortably his best performance of the season as far as I'm concerned.

I do hope Sarri is just playing him as a forward to make a point to the board... "Hey look, my strikers are shit so I'll play Hazard here unless you get me another striker in January". I don't see his long-term future as a CF, however he CAN do a job there away against teams that aren't scared of actually coming out to play football. Against teams that park the bus, it's a total waste of Hazard, IMO. 

Either way, well played and well done on 100 (well, 101!) goals, Eden. I like to be proved wrong, but to properly convince me he needs to do it in the next game, and the game after that, and so on. Not every game, because I accept he's human, but if he is truly world class then we should be seeing performances of that ilk on a more frequent basis, in my view!!

He was brilliant yesterday but wouldn't say comfortably his best performance as he was sensational against Cardiff and thought he was excellent against Southampton too. Cardiff he got a hattrick and was on another level.

Regarding playing Hazard up front, I disagree. I think Sarri will target a striker but I don't think he is playing him up top to make a point. Giroud does not suit his fluid and pressing style, while Morata is not good enough and Sarri has given him chances. When he was at Napoli, he started off with Millik as the CF and when he got injured, he played Mertens in a false no.9 and it worked excellently for him playing with Callejon, Insigne and Mertens. I always thought when Sarri took over,t hat he eventually would try Willian, Pedro and Hazard as he done a similar thing at Napoli and with the way he plays you can see why he persisted with it, despite it not working against Leicester.

If he gets an assist on Sunday that is 10 goals and 10 assists in all comps before the New Year. Would be fantastic achievement.

[OneMoSalah 8,886]

49 minutes ago, Stats said:

If he gets an assist on Sunday that is 10 goals and 10 assists in all comps before the New Year. Would be fantastic achievement.

Well 10 of each is a good return for Eden but the way he started, its frustrating because he went on a run of not scoring in however many weeks after scoring 8 goals at the beginning, he could have had a lot more. This inconsistencies infront of goal have always been an issue for him. Its not all what his games about but to become the best player in the world, which is now his goal surely, it has to improve. 

 

[DDA 9,938]

Seen a few quotes of him claiming he doesn't want to stay in the false 9/striker position. He prefers to touch the ball more. 

[Unionjack 7,531]

Eden Hazard to keep Chelsea guessing as he waits on Real Madrid

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/12/27/eden-hazard-keep-chelsea-guessing-waits-real-madrid/

 

Eden Hazard is prepared to keep Chelsea sweating on his future until the summer as he waits to find out if Real Madrid will make him their number one transfer target.

And Hazard has put pressure on Chelsea to solve their striker crisis in the January transfer window by revealing he does not want to become a permanent false nine.

Chelsea are looking at a range of options and have been working on a potential deal in which they take over Gonzalo Higuain’s loan from Juventus and Alvaro Morata moves to AC Milan on a temporary basis.

Hazard became Chelsea’s latest centurion with two goals in the victory against Watford, which meant he has netted three times in four games since being asked to play as a false nine while Morata has been missing.

The Belgian raised hopes among Chelsea fans that he is ready to sign a new contract by declaring that he wants to become a club legend “like Lampard, Terry and Drogba” immediately after the Vicarage Road win.

But asked later whether that meant he is now preparing to commit his long-term future to Chelsea, Hazard replied: “I am just focussed on the pitch. I will see at the end of the season.”

With a new deal worth well over £300,000-a-week on the table, Chelsea will push Hazard to make a decision sooner than the summer, when he will only have 12 months remaining on his contract.

The 27-year-old’s advisors were in London earlier this month, but Chelsea know that their best chance of keeping Hazard past this season is to hope Real prioritise one of their other big-money targets.

Other than Hazard, Real are also interested in Paris Saint-Germain pair Neymar and Kylian Mbappe but neither of those players are close to the end of their contracts.

Hazard has given mixed messages over his future both inside and outside Chelsea. He excited backroom staff recently by suggesting he was preparing to stay, but he has never communicated that officially to the club.

What happens in the January transfer window could play a major part in whether or not Chelsea can convince Hazard to give up on his dream of playing for Real.

Hazard has reaffirmed the fact that he does not believe the false nine through the middle is his best position and wants to move back out to the left.

He could get his wish at the weekend if injuries to Pedro and Callum Hudson-Odoi leave Sarri with no option but to bring in striker Olivier Grioud.

But Hazard may have to wait to see if Chelsea can sign Higuain, or another striker, before being sure of where he will play the majority of the second half of the season.

Asked whether he gets more chances to score playing through the middle, Hazard replied: “Yeah, but my position is winger. I feel better as a winger, but I have played well as a striker against Watford and Brighton. I did well as a striker, so the manager chooses where to put me on the pitch and then I try to do my best.”

Hazard’s recent switch into the middle has drawn comparisons with his Belgian compatriot Dries Mertens, who was successfully converted by Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri while he was in charge of Napoli.

But Hazard made it clear he has no intention of making a permanent position change by insisting Mertens is more suited to the role than him.

“Dries is more of a striker than me,” said Hazard. “I am more like a playmaker. Since I started football I like to come, touch the ball. Dries is not like this, he just wants to stay in the box. That’s why he scores a lot of goals. We are different, but yeah I know with Sarri he likes to change some positions sometimes.”

It was also revealing that Hazard disagreed with one journalist who suggested his goals through the middle could help him eclipse the 2014/15 season, when he was voted Player of the Year.

Hazard, who finished that season with 19 goals for Chelsea and already has 12 this term, said: “I score more goals, but I don’t feel I play better. I just score more goals.”

Sarri even opted to keep Hazard through the middle against Watford when Pedro was forced off with a hamstring injury, instead sending on 18-year-old winger Hudson-Odoi.

But Hudson-Odoi also suffered a similar injury problem, which gives Sarri a headache ahead of selecting his team for Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek missed the trip to Vicarage Road, but could replace Pedro if he is fit enough otherwise Sarri may have to bring in Giroud and restore Hazard to the left with Willian on the right.

Other than Higuain, Chelsea have considered Nabil Fekir, Callum Wilson, who Bournemouth are determined to keep, and Jamie Vardy as January targets.

 

[Vesper 30,172]

2 hours ago, Unionjack said:

Eden Hazard to keep Chelsea guessing as he waits on Real Madrid

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2018/12/27/eden-hazard-keep-chelsea-guessing-waits-real-madrid/

 

Eden Hazard is prepared to keep Chelsea sweating on his future until the summer as he waits to find out if Real Madrid will make him their number one transfer target.

And Hazard has put pressure on Chelsea to solve their striker crisis in the January transfer window by revealing he does not want to become a permanent false nine.

Chelsea are looking at a range of options and have been working on a potential deal in which they take over Gonzalo Higuain’s loan from Juventus and Alvaro Morata moves to AC Milan on a temporary basis.

Hazard became Chelsea’s latest centurion with two goals in the victory against Watford, which meant he has netted three times in four games since being asked to play as a false nine while Morata has been missing.

The Belgian raised hopes among Chelsea fans that he is ready to sign a new contract by declaring that he wants to become a club legend “like Lampard, Terry and Drogba” immediately after the Vicarage Road win.

But asked later whether that meant he is now preparing to commit his long-term future to Chelsea, Hazard replied: “I am just focussed on the pitch. I will see at the end of the season.”

With a new deal worth well over £300,000-a-week on the table, Chelsea will push Hazard to make a decision sooner than the summer, when he will only have 12 months remaining on his contract.

The 27-year-old’s advisors were in London earlier this month, but Chelsea know that their best chance of keeping Hazard past this season is to hope Real prioritise one of their other big-money targets.

Other than Hazard, Real are also interested in Paris Saint-Germain pair Neymar and Kylian Mbappe but neither of those players are close to the end of their contracts.

Hazard has given mixed messages over his future both inside and outside Chelsea. He excited backroom staff recently by suggesting he was preparing to stay, but he has never communicated that officially to the club.

What happens in the January transfer window could play a major part in whether or not Chelsea can convince Hazard to give up on his dream of playing for Real.

Hazard has reaffirmed the fact that he does not believe the false nine through the middle is his best position and wants to move back out to the left.

He could get his wish at the weekend if injuries to Pedro and Callum Hudson-Odoi leave Sarri with no option but to bring in striker Olivier Grioud.

But Hazard may have to wait to see if Chelsea can sign Higuain, or another striker, before being sure of where he will play the majority of the second half of the season.

Asked whether he gets more chances to score playing through the middle, Hazard replied: “Yeah, but my position is winger. I feel better as a winger, but I have played well as a striker against Watford and Brighton. I did well as a striker, so the manager chooses where to put me on the pitch and then I try to do my best.”

Hazard’s recent switch into the middle has drawn comparisons with his Belgian compatriot Dries Mertens, who was successfully converted by Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri while he was in charge of Napoli.

But Hazard made it clear he has no intention of making a permanent position change by insisting Mertens is more suited to the role than him.

“Dries is more of a striker than me,” said Hazard. “I am more like a playmaker. Since I started football I like to come, touch the ball. Dries is not like this, he just wants to stay in the box. That’s why he scores a lot of goals. We are different, but yeah I know with Sarri he likes to change some positions sometimes.”

It was also revealing that Hazard disagreed with one journalist who suggested his goals through the middle could help him eclipse the 2014/15 season, when he was voted Player of the Year.

Hazard, who finished that season with 19 goals for Chelsea and already has 12 this term, said: “I score more goals, but I don’t feel I play better. I just score more goals.”

Sarri even opted to keep Hazard through the middle against Watford when Pedro was forced off with a hamstring injury, instead sending on 18-year-old winger Hudson-Odoi.

But Hudson-Odoi also suffered a similar injury problem, which gives Sarri a headache ahead of selecting his team for Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek missed the trip to Vicarage Road, but could replace Pedro if he is fit enough otherwise Sarri may have to bring in Giroud and restore Hazard to the left with Willian on the right.

Other than Higuain, Chelsea have considered Nabil Fekir, Callum Wilson, who Bournemouth are determined to keep, and Jamie Vardy as January targets.

 

What a depressing article, from every angle, including those targets.

It does contain great explanation about why Hazard is not suited to central role like Mertens.

“Dries is more of a striker than me,” said Hazard. “I am more like a playmaker. Since I started football I like to come, touch the ball. Dries is not like this, he just wants to stay in the box. That’s why he scores a lot of goals. We are different, but yeah I know with Sarri he likes to change some positions sometimes.”

Only way Sarri runs a false nine next game is if his front 3 is 

LW Willian

RW RLC

False 9  Eden

I expect Morata to get the start though, over Giroud,  if he is fully fit

With RW Willian and LW Eden

Kovacic is injured (I think) so Barkley over RLC I will guess

We already know what the back 4 will be, sigh