Opinion: Can Eden Hazard be the Best Player in the League Again?

It seems that people are still searching for Eden Hazard’s shot on goal in the Champions League, the Belgian blasted a penalty against Maccabi Tel-Aviv but the missed penalty was not a problem as Chelsea won the tie 4-0. Hazard also had a role to play in the 2-0 win over Arsenal as he assisted Kurt Zouma for the first goal and then was lucky to score the second, which was deflected into the net. Chelsea got back-to-back wins and seem to be heading in the right track.

After the Champions League victory, Jose Mourinho reiterated that Hazard is still the best player in the country, even if he hasn’t been playing to his best ability this season. The Belgian attacker was one of the best players in the league last season but hasn’t been at his best this time around. Hazard, in fact, the entire Chelsea team have played below par, but the last two games should give Chelsea fans some hope with regards to Hazard getting his groove back. The Belgian wasn’t the game changer that he has been for Chelsea innumerable times, but he certainly played a hand in the key events in front of goal.

Hazard was involved in almost every good thing that Chelsea did, let’s not focus on the whole Diego Costa incident, Hazard was fluent in attack, although the dominant period for Chelsea was when Gabriel was already sent off.

More time required for Hazard to shine

Hazard though still doesn’t look like the player who was tearing defences to shreds last season. His link up play with Costa or Fabregas has also been greatly reduced this season, it could be due to the fact that Costa seems to go onto the pitch to fight more than play the game but Hazard does need the support of the other players if he is to do well.

His ability to run at defences also has not shone through this season and the only way the Belgian can get back to his best is if he keeps playing more games. He does have great ability and quality but similar to most of the Chelsea squad, he seems to be drained out and the dynamism from his game has almost been squeezed out it seems.

The performances by Hazard in the last two games certainly will provide better reading for Chelsea fans, he might not have been the best player on the pitch but he certainly got the job done and that could be the first step in ensuring that Hazard and Chelsea get back to their best. The season is still long and with more than 30 games to go, Hazard does have ample time in his hands to play at the levels of last season and lead Chelsea to greater heights.