Eden Hazard

[BlueLyon 9,359]

If we didnt win that CL in 2012, Eden would never come. And now he is evolving into top player. That win was extremely important for our future.

[Korea 734]

I kind of wish hazard fell down similar to what Neymar does.....

All those little kicks, shoves, pushes are going to take a toll on Hazard's body in the future...

[OneMoSalah 8,776]

I kind of wish hazard fell down similar to what Neymar does.....

All those little kicks, shoves, pushes are going to take a toll on Hazard's body in the future...

What you want him to dive and also roll about for fucking ages when he gets fouled? Ok. There are ways to buy fouls, like Suarez does very well when he gets his body between the ball and opponent or like Eden does do by constantly making the opponent think hes going to take the ball before taking it away from him but to ask Eden to fall down for minimal contact like you see in Spain with players and roll about for ages like various players in Spain/Italy/Portugal is ridiculous.

[Korea 734]

What you want him to dive and also roll about for fucking ages when he gets fouled? Ok. There are ways to buy fouls, like Suarez does very well when he gets his body between the ball and opponent or like Eden does do by constantly making the opponent think hes going to take the ball before taking it away from him but to ask Eden to fall down for minimal contact like you see in Spain with players and roll about for ages like various players in Spain/Italy/Portugal is ridiculous.

Yes, because Suarez doesn't flop around half the game.. like Neymar does.... said no one ever.

Hazard needs to learn how to fall and dive/flop if he wants to extend his career. All those little knocks to his ankles and the rest of his body will come back to long term injuries for him, which will be very difficult to overcome when he gets older.

[OneMoSalah 8,776]

Yes, because Suarez doesn't flop around half the game.. like Neymar does.... said no one ever.

Hazard needs to learn how to fall and dive/flop if he wants to extend his career. All those little knocks to his ankles and the rest of his body will come back to long term injuries for him, which will be very difficult to overcome when he gets older.

Sure there are moments Suarez dives but like all good players, not just Suarez, they are clever with their bodies getting themselves between the opposition and the ball and win fouls.

I don't like this diving carry on you see or when players get a little kick or something they are on the ground doing 500400640 rolls to try and get the opposition player booked as well as win a foul.

[Jase 43,479]

I kind of wish hazard fell down similar to what Neymar does.....

All those little kicks, shoves, pushes are going to take a toll on Hazard's body in the future...

Ronaldo and Messi have suffered lots of times during their career and it hasn't exactly took its toll on them, has it?

It's not like opponents are kicking him out of the field in the manner like Honduras did in this World Cup.

[NiclasCFC 2,582]

What happened to the nr 10 in the topic name?

[Jase 43,479]

What happened to the nr 10 in the topic name?

He's gone. Long gone.

He's now known as Eden Mesnallemarbenry...

[RoyalBlues 4,050]

[MrExcalibur100 7,124]

I know this has been posted before, but:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJQ9AWwnA2Q

Best young player in the world and does with a football what most footballers can only dream of doing.

[MrExcalibur100 7,124]

I'm not calling him lazy at all. I don't remember ever calling him that. What I meant is that there are guys who work way harder than others because of their approach of the match. What I meant is that sometimes Hazard just fades... for example the first two Belgium matches at the world cup (didn't watch today's). He simply faded in the background for the most part and he seemed quite conformed from afar (or laid back as you put it). If he didn't receive the ball enough, if he didn't run, move enough, if he didn't yell at his teammates enough to receive more than ball than he could work harder or be more vocal or seek the game (in Portuguese we say that a player can take ownership of a match, meaning that when things aren't going his way, he just makes it happen, take matter into his hands and fight, fight, fight). It doesn't mean he was lazy, just that he was passive. I'm calling him passive, not lazy, and I don't mean all the time, but often when he's quiet. Bale is very active, he's presenting himself all the time, running all the time, complaining quite often when he doesn't receive the pass... you see that he's a Energyzer bunny and even annoying. I look at Hazard and I feel like he's okay at all times, whereas other players seem more bothered if things aren't going their way... that's what I meant...

This is a classic example of being overly critical of our own and overrating or overhyping other players. This is normal. If Hazard was a Man Utd player, the wankfest on here would have been crazy. And that's not a criticism, Barbara. I expect a surgeon to know more about the human anatomy than a geologist for example.

(1) You mention the Belgium matches, okay, let's talk about the Belgium gane and Hazard "fading". Let's take the Russia game for example. It's very common for us casual fans to overstate the importance of a player's individual efforts and understate the team effort. Will James look as good as he does if Colombia was playing poorly, no. Belgium have not been playing well. They have been playing, slow, ponderous, predictable football and have had the unfortunate ignominy of playing two defensive minded teams (at least in the games that Hazard started). This is obviously going to have a negative effect on individual performances, particularly of the forwards. Even more so for Hazard as he got double-marked on that left wing in both games vs Russia and Algeria. He is the only player on the Belgian team that gets this treatment. This is a big problem for him because as been discussed a 1000 times, Vetorghnen (sp?)/ Vermalean are CB's and simply do not support the winger in attack, so Hazard is left in a situation were he has to beat two players OR receives the ball with his back to goal and is closed down quickly. Back to ^^^^^^^ in a moment.

(a) It was only in when Algeria came out to play a little and lost the ball in transition that Hazard had an opportunity to launch a counter and the result was a goal for Mertens.

The Russia game was similar. The first half, stranded on the left side, facing the problems I discussed in (1). It was late in the 2nd half, when Wilmots became less defensive minded and focused on "shape" did he give Hazard a free role and he wrecked havoc on Russia's backline in a 10 minute cameo. He started drifting in to the centre where he was able to influence the game more.

What happens next, Belgium win the ball in transition, Origi lays it to Hazard and he blows by a Russian defender, cutting it back on his "weaker" foot for Origi. Goal for Origi.

So, two key actions when his team are not playing well, when the football is slow and predictable, in searing heat (both those games played at midday), when his coach is tactically inept, he still provides to match-winning moments. Very similar to Messi vs Iran and Bosnia. I dunno about you guys, but that is the mark of a world class player.

(2) It's up to Wilmots to solve the problems in (1), that even we arm-chair experts and analysts can see. Give Hazard a free role. You play with 5 centre-halves for fuck's sake. If not, start him as a 10 where he has more breathing space. Also, stop playing Dembele all the time cos he's been shit for a year or so and start Origi ahead of Lukaku because the USA are coming to defend deep, frustrate and park the bus. It's a shame Vanden Borre got injured because he looks like the only decent fullback in the Belgian team (why didn't he start in 1st two games?)

(3) You said Hazard is "lazy", no he's not. Check the facts. He covers an insane amount of kilometres per game for a winger. People also accused Messi of being lazy, calling him Walkessi and all that silliness. None of them highlighted how Barca's system was not as fluid as before. Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets triumvirate was not as good as before. Pressing game was not as good as before. Pep, the guy responsible for a fair share of the success of that GREAT Barcelona was no longer there. Then comes the "Messi is just walking". . "He's not calling for the ball" etc, without mentioning all the other subtleties. It's the same with Hazard. People, like you (no offense) criticize him for things that are beyond his control instead of looking at the broader picture.

Then the Bale thing is wrong. This is what annoys me. Bale has been known to disappear from games at his time with Tottenham and Madrid. Watch him, he does those exact same things you say Hazard does. Bale does not demand the ball. He is quiet on the pitch. What you did there is what I call overrating the opposition player and underrating our own. I even read someone here put Bale in the same sentence as Messi and Ronaldo. Many players disappear from games for various reasons, Messi included.

You can't deny that Hazard has not suffered from this problem this past season because he's under the best tactician in the world, Mourinho. Almost everything good about our attacking play came through Hazard. Maybe when we have a better team than the average one we saw last season, we can see Hazard in a more fluid system.

It's amazing how many conclusions you come to from a bunch of games. Surely, most of what you said doesn't hold true for the Hazard that we all saw dazzle for Chelsea this past season, so I'm assuming it's mostly based on the World Cup.

All the names thrown around. Reus, Bale, Neymar, Robben, Sanchez Ribery. I won't take any of these players ahead of Hazard. I don't consider any of these players to be better than Hazard, neither do I consider them to have his talent. The thing this guy is able to do with a football is beyond scary. The only winger I put above him is Ronaldo and that guy is not even a winger anymore. The only player I'll swap him for is Messi. And I say this as a football fan, not a Chelsea one.

[MrExcalibur100 7,124]

And is it just me or are Chelsea fans in particular overly critical of their players? We've become like Barcelona fans. Our star player does not perform to the absurd standard of some and every little (supposed) defect in his game is compared to the supposed "defect-less" "other" , in this case, Bale and Neymar. I think that's insulting to Hazard. The guy is 23, and is already an established international, not some teenage prospect as some here seem to treat him.

If we want to discuss weaknesses in his game, let's do it. Like Mourinho said, every player has weaknesses. Ronaldo's weakness is that he's not a very efficient shooter. He takes too many shots per game and when he's having a poor shooting night, Madrid tend to suffer. Robben has weaknesses. Even Messi does. Luis Suarez goes around biting people when his weaknesses are exposed.

This is Hazard's thread, so let's discuss his weaknesses. He has very, very few weaknesses to his game and his game is very complete. I can't say this about many young players. I've seen him play a 100 plus times for us and the one that stands out is that his shooting technique is not that great. Thankfully, it's something he can improve on and learn, not something innate, like his close control. If he can do that, he can score the 40+ whatever goals he wants to, because his close control gets him into positions on the pitch very, very, very few players can. (Like that moment vs Galatasaray). Messi is like Hazard with much better shooting/finishing technique. The younger Messi didn't always have that.

It's a consequence of the player Eden has always been. He has always had it in his brain to go for the beautiful pass rather than shoot. It's not just about taking more shots as is suggested here but about improving his shooting technique first.

[Special Juan 27,424]

Sent a fan a signed shirt via courier delivery...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2014/article-2674090/Eden-Hazard-reduces-79-year-old-Belgium-fan-tears-signed-shirt-surprise-gift.html

Top man.

[haranr 485]

EDEN IS THE KING!

[Stingray 9,441]

This is a classic example of being overly critical of our own and overrating or overhyping other players. This is normal. If Hazard was a Man Utd player, the wankfest on here would have been crazy. And that's not a criticism, Barbara. I expect a surgeon to know more about the human anatomy than a geologist for example.

(1) You mention the Belgium matches, okay, let's talk about the Belgium gane and Hazard "fading". Let's take the Russia game for example. It's very common for us casual fans to overstate the importance of a player's individual efforts and understate the team effort. Will James look as good as he does if Colombia was playing poorly, no. Belgium have not been playing well. They have been playing, slow, ponderous, predictable football and have had the unfortunate ignominy of playing two defensive minded teams (at least in the games that Hazard started). This is obviously going to have a negative effect on individual performances, particularly of the forwards. Even more so for Hazard as he got double-marked on that left wing in both games vs Russia and Algeria. He is the only player on the Belgian team that gets this treatment. This is a big problem for him because as been discussed a 1000 times, Vetorghnen (sp?)/ Vermalean are CB's and simply do not support the winger in attack, so Hazard is left in a situation were he has to beat two players OR receives the ball with his back to goal and is closed down quickly. Back to ^^^^^^^ in a moment.

(a) It was only in when Algeria came out to play a little and lost the ball in transition that Hazard had an opportunity to launch a counter and the result was a goal for Mertens.

The Russia game was similar. The first half, stranded on the left side, facing the problems I discussed in (1). It was late in the 2nd half, when Wilmots became less defensive minded and focused on "shape" did he give Hazard a free role and he wrecked havoc on Russia's backline in a 10 minute cameo. He started drifting in to the centre where he was able to influence the game more.

What happens next, Belgium win the ball in transition, Origi lays it to Hazard and he blows by a Russian defender, cutting it back on his "weaker" foot for Origi. Goal for Origi.

So, two key actions when his team are not playing well, when the football is slow and predictable, in searing heat (both those games played at midday), when his coach is tactically inept, he still provides to match-winning moments. Very similar to Messi vs Iran and Bosnia. I dunno about you guys, but that is the mark of a world class player.

(2) It's up to Wilmots to solve the problems in (1), that even we arm-chair experts and analysts can see. Give Hazard a free role. You play with 5 centre-halves for fuck's sake. If not, start him as a 10 where he has more breathing space. Also, stop playing Dembele all the time cos he's been shit for a year or so and start Origi ahead of Lukaku because the USA are coming to defend deep, frustrate and park the bus. It's a shame Vanden Borre got injured because he looks like the only decent fullback in the Belgian team (why didn't he start in 1st two games?)

(3) You said Hazard is "lazy", no he's not. Check the facts. He covers an insane amount of kilometres per game for a winger. People also accused Messi of being lazy, calling him Walkessi and all that silliness. None of them highlighted how Barca's system was not as fluid as before. Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets triumvirate was not as good as before. Pressing game was not as good as before. Pep, the guy responsible for a fair share of the success of that GREAT Barcelona was no longer there. Then comes the "Messi is just walking". . "He's not calling for the ball" etc, without mentioning all the other subtleties. It's the same with Hazard. People, like you (no offense) criticize him for things that are beyond his control instead of looking at the broader picture.

Then the Bale thing is wrong. This is what annoys me. Bale has been known to disappear from games at his time with Tottenham and Madrid. Watch him, he does those exact same things you say Hazard does. Bale does not demand the ball. He is quiet on the pitch. What you did there is what I call overrating the opposition player and underrating our own. I even read someone here put Bale in the same sentence as Messi and Ronaldo. Many players disappear from games for various reasons, Messi included.

You can't deny that Hazard has not suffered from this problem this past season because he's under the best tactician in the world, Mourinho. Almost everything good about our attacking play came through Hazard. Maybe when we have a better team than the average one we saw last season, we can see Hazard in a more fluid system.

It's amazing how many conclusions you come to from a bunch of games. Surely, most of what you said doesn't hold true for the Hazard that we all saw dazzle for Chelsea this past season, so I'm assuming it's mostly based on the World Cup.

All the names thrown around. Reus, Bale, Neymar, Robben, Sanchez Ribery. I won't take any of these players ahead of Hazard. I don't consider any of these players to be better than Hazard, neither do I consider them to have his talent. The thing this guy is able to do with a football is beyond scary. The only winger I put above him is Ronaldo and that guy is not even a winger anymore. The only player I'll swap him for is Messi. And I say this as a football fan, not a Chelsea one.

Love this post tbh

[Styles 9,790]

This is a classic example of being overly critical of our own and overrating or overhyping other players. This is normal. If Hazard was a Man Utd player, the wankfest on here would have been crazy. And that's not a criticism, Barbara. I expect a surgeon to know more about the human anatomy than a geologist for example.

(1) You mention the Belgium matches, okay, let's talk about the Belgium gane and Hazard "fading". Let's take the Russia game for example. It's very common for us casual fans to overstate the importance of a player's individual efforts and understate the team effort. Will James look as good as he does if Colombia was playing poorly, no. Belgium have not been playing well. They have been playing, slow, ponderous, predictable football and have had the unfortunate ignominy of playing two defensive minded teams (at least in the games that Hazard started). This is obviously going to have a negative effect on individual performances, particularly of the forwards. Even more so for Hazard as he got double-marked on that left wing in both games vs Russia and Algeria. He is the only player on the Belgian team that gets this treatment. This is a big problem for him because as been discussed a 1000 times, Vetorghnen (sp?)/ Vermalean are CB's and simply do not support the winger in attack, so Hazard is left in a situation were he has to beat two players OR receives the ball with his back to goal and is closed down quickly. Back to ^^^^^^^ in a moment.

(a) It was only in when Algeria came out to play a little and lost the ball in transition that Hazard had an opportunity to launch a counter and the result was a goal for Mertens.

The Russia game was similar. The first half, stranded on the left side, facing the problems I discussed in (1). It was late in the 2nd half, when Wilmots became less defensive minded and focused on "shape" did he give Hazard a free role and he wrecked havoc on Russia's backline in a 10 minute cameo. He started drifting in to the centre where he was able to influence the game more.

What happens next, Belgium win the ball in transition, Origi lays it to Hazard and he blows by a Russian defender, cutting it back on his "weaker" foot for Origi. Goal for Origi.

So, two key actions when his team are not playing well, when the football is slow and predictable, in searing heat (both those games played at midday), when his coach is tactically inept, he still provides to match-winning moments. Very similar to Messi vs Iran and Bosnia. I dunno about you guys, but that is the mark of a world class player.

(2) It's up to Wilmots to solve the problems in (1), that even we arm-chair experts and analysts can see. Give Hazard a free role. You play with 5 centre-halves for fuck's sake. If not, start him as a 10 where he has more breathing space. Also, stop playing Dembele all the time cos he's been shit for a year or so and start Origi ahead of Lukaku because the USA are coming to defend deep, frustrate and park the bus. It's a shame Vanden Borre got injured because he looks like the only decent fullback in the Belgian team (why didn't he start in 1st two games?)

(3) You said Hazard is "lazy", no he's not. Check the facts. He covers an insane amount of kilometres per game for a winger. People also accused Messi of being lazy, calling him Walkessi and all that silliness. None of them highlighted how Barca's system was not as fluid as before. Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets triumvirate was not as good as before. Pressing game was not as good as before. Pep, the guy responsible for a fair share of the success of that GREAT Barcelona was no longer there. Then comes the "Messi is just walking". . "He's not calling for the ball" etc, without mentioning all the other subtleties. It's the same with Hazard. People, like you (no offense) criticize him for things that are beyond his control instead of looking at the broader picture.

Then the Bale thing is wrong. This is what annoys me. Bale has been known to disappear from games at his time with Tottenham and Madrid. Watch him, he does those exact same things you say Hazard does. Bale does not demand the ball. He is quiet on the pitch. What you did there is what I call overrating the opposition player and underrating our own. I even read someone here put Bale in the same sentence as Messi and Ronaldo. Many players disappear from games for various reasons, Messi included.

You can't deny that Hazard has not suffered from this problem this past season because he's under the best tactician in the world, Mourinho. Almost everything good about our attacking play came through Hazard. Maybe when we have a better team than the average one we saw last season, we can see Hazard in a more fluid system.

It's amazing how many conclusions you come to from a bunch of games. Surely, most of what you said doesn't hold true for the Hazard that we all saw dazzle for Chelsea this past season, so I'm assuming it's mostly based on the World Cup.

All the names thrown around. Reus, Bale, Neymar, Robben, Sanchez Ribery. I won't take any of these players ahead of Hazard. I don't consider any of these players to be better than Hazard, neither do I consider them to have his talent. The thing this guy is able to do with a football is beyond scary. The only winger I put above him is Ronaldo and that guy is not even a winger anymore. The only player I'll swap him for is Messi. And I say this as a football fan, not a Chelsea one.

[DYC. 7,542]

This is a classic example of being overly critical of our own and overrating or overhyping other players. This is normal. If Hazard was a Man Utd player, the wankfest on here would have been crazy. And that's not a criticism, Barbara. I expect a surgeon to know more about the human anatomy than a geologist for example.

(1) You mention the Belgium matches, okay, let's talk about the Belgium gane and Hazard "fading". Let's take the Russia game for example. It's very common for us casual fans to overstate the importance of a player's individual efforts and understate the team effort. Will James look as good as he does if Colombia was playing poorly, no. Belgium have not been playing well. They have been playing, slow, ponderous, predictable football and have had the unfortunate ignominy of playing two defensive minded teams (at least in the games that Hazard started). This is obviously going to have a negative effect on individual performances, particularly of the forwards. Even more so for Hazard as he got double-marked on that left wing in both games vs Russia and Algeria. He is the only player on the Belgian team that gets this treatment. This is a big problem for him because as been discussed a 1000 times, Vetorghnen (sp?)/ Vermalean are CB's and simply do not support the winger in attack, so Hazard is left in a situation were he has to beat two players OR receives the ball with his back to goal and is closed down quickly. Back to ^^^^^^^ in a moment.

(a) It was only in when Algeria came out to play a little and lost the ball in transition that Hazard had an opportunity to launch a counter and the result was a goal for Mertens.

The Russia game was similar. The first half, stranded on the left side, facing the problems I discussed in (1). It was late in the 2nd half, when Wilmots became less defensive minded and focused on "shape" did he give Hazard a free role and he wrecked havoc on Russia's backline in a 10 minute cameo. He started drifting in to the centre where he was able to influence the game more.

What happens next, Belgium win the ball in transition, Origi lays it to Hazard and he blows by a Russian defender, cutting it back on his "weaker" foot for Origi. Goal for Origi.

So, two key actions when his team are not playing well, when the football is slow and predictable, in searing heat (both those games played at midday), when his coach is tactically inept, he still provides to match-winning moments. Very similar to Messi vs Iran and Bosnia. I dunno about you guys, but that is the mark of a world class player.

(2) It's up to Wilmots to solve the problems in (1), that even we arm-chair experts and analysts can see. Give Hazard a free role. You play with 5 centre-halves for fuck's sake. If not, start him as a 10 where he has more breathing space. Also, stop playing Dembele all the time cos he's been shit for a year or so and start Origi ahead of Lukaku because the USA are coming to defend deep, frustrate and park the bus. It's a shame Vanden Borre got injured because he looks like the only decent fullback in the Belgian team (why didn't he start in 1st two games?)

(3) You said Hazard is "lazy", no he's not. Check the facts. He covers an insane amount of kilometres per game for a winger. People also accused Messi of being lazy, calling him Walkessi and all that silliness. None of them highlighted how Barca's system was not as fluid as before. Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets triumvirate was not as good as before. Pressing game was not as good as before. Pep, the guy responsible for a fair share of the success of that GREAT Barcelona was no longer there. Then comes the "Messi is just walking". . "He's not calling for the ball" etc, without mentioning all the other subtleties. It's the same with Hazard. People, like you (no offense) criticize him for things that are beyond his control instead of looking at the broader picture.

Then the Bale thing is wrong. This is what annoys me. Bale has been known to disappear from games at his time with Tottenham and Madrid. Watch him, he does those exact same things you say Hazard does. Bale does not demand the ball. He is quiet on the pitch. What you did there is what I call overrating the opposition player and underrating our own. I even read someone here put Bale in the same sentence as Messi and Ronaldo. Many players disappear from games for various reasons, Messi included.

You can't deny that Hazard has not suffered from this problem this past season because he's under the best tactician in the world, Mourinho. Almost everything good about our attacking play came through Hazard. Maybe when we have a better team than the average one we saw last season, we can see Hazard in a more fluid system.

It's amazing how many conclusions you come to from a bunch of games. Surely, most of what you said doesn't hold true for the Hazard that we all saw dazzle for Chelsea this past season, so I'm assuming it's mostly based on the World Cup.

All the names thrown around. Reus, Bale, Neymar, Robben, Sanchez Ribery. I won't take any of these players ahead of Hazard. I don't consider any of these players to be better than Hazard, neither do I consider them to have his talent. The thing this guy is able to do with a football is beyond scary. The only winger I put above him is Ronaldo and that guy is not even a winger anymore. The only player I'll swap him for is Messi. And I say this as a football fan, not a Chelsea one.

You could've put more effort in your post imo..

[Korea 734]

Ronaldo and Messi have suffered lots of times during their career and it hasn't exactly took its toll on them, has it?

It's not like opponents are kicking him out of the field in the manner like Honduras did in this World Cup.

Cristiano and Messi flopped quite a bit....