Eden Hazard has not been taking his transfer to Real Madrid as seriously as he should have been claimed ex Chelsea striker Tony Cascarino.
Few men on the field of football can claim to be as ridiculously talented as the Belgian and yet, for some unknown reason, the hallowed Bernabeau seems to hack suck the wizardry out of this yesteryear great.
Is it the pressure of playing at the biggest club in the world? Or is it the pressure of being handed that hallowed no. 7 jersey that once Cristiano Ronaldo wore? Or is it, as Cascarino claims a lack of discipline?
Hazard -Not the Galactico that Real Madrid wanted
Tony Cascariono was speaking after Real Madrid were eliminated out of Champions League on a 4-2 aggregate against Man City. And while the collective result was heart-crushing, what was even more worrisome was the plight of Eden Hazard.
The ex Chelsea man had just 37 touches on the ball,2nd lowest from Madrid. Add to that his solitary goal in 22 appearances for Los Blancos and it is hard to not see the conviction in Cascarino’s statement.
“We know how brilliant Hazard can be, we know what a difference he can make to a football team. But he seriously didn’t take the move to Real Madrid seriously,
“He didn’t take the move to Real Madrid seriously.”
“He turned up overweight & he’s paid for it.”
“Watching him last night was like watching a different player.”@TonyCascarino62 is disappointed with how Eden Hazard’s first season in Spain has gone 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/QGMqtMOBHH
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) August 8, 2020
“He turned up overweight, he’s paid for it hugely by trying to play catch-up all season, he’s ended up getting himself injured. Not just the ankle injury but another niggle here and there.” said Tony.
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What was the most pleasant sight about Hazard at Chelsea was how he used to beat defenders with his crazy dribbling, absolutely humiliating defenses and wreaking havoc in the opposing camp.
But he failed to best a single defender in 2nd leg against Man City.
“He does switch off every now and again Hazard. As good and as great as he can be, he will suddenly just down tools. That’s what he did last summer and that’s the consequence of his season.” Cascarino added.
Where from now-
#Eden– I'll be up for this next season .. #hazard #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/31mHOulqZT
— Eden Hazard (@Hazardedn_) August 7, 2020
Reflecting on his first season at Madrid, Hazard spoke-
“It has been a tough year for me you know, I’ve had injuries and was out for almost six months.”
The entire episode does bring to the fore what a move to Real Madrid means. Not only are you challenging other teams, but you are chasing history every moment you play. Not only are you trying to score goals but also trying to outshine perhaps some of the GOAT’s of the game.
And Eden Hazard seems to have succumbed to this pressure at the moment at least. The same pressure that turned Gareth Bale, who was once touted the next Ronaldo, to a bench warmer.The same pressure which turned Kaka to a former shadow of himself.
And the same pressure that made a young sensation like CR7 a GOAT.
And so the question remains. Can Hazard start taking things seriously enough to go the CR7 way or will he turn into a bench warmer like Gareth Bale?
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