Eden Hazard is being integrated back into a rejuvenated Chelsea side step-by-step as he looks to overcome a series of minor injuries that have seen the Belgium miss out on a number of the Blues recent fixtures.
The Blues main man of last season, in an interview with The Guardian’s Dom Fifield, claims he is not blind to his own failure in letting down former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, and says he sent him a text message when he discovered his manager had been sacked.
I sent him the message to say I was sorry he had gone and … well … just that I was sorry. We’d enjoyed all that success together last season, but this time round we hadn’t. I felt a little bit guilty because I’d been player of the year. I’d been one of the most decisive players, and this year I’d performed less well.
Hazard had limped off injured early on in Mourinho’s final game away to Leicester, in a match that had summed up the manager’s entire 2015/16 campaign.
I hadn’t been at the same level. So I sent that text to José and he came back to me, wishing me all the best for the future. For a team of champions to go through what we have this year even I can’t explain. Things have been better recently, but we’re still not winning games quite as we used to. No one can put his finger on what’s happened at Chelsea.
The winger, who had been halted at 49 goals for the Blues for an incredible 30 appearances, finally put an end to his goalless misery in the 5-1 thumping of MK Dons last weekend, which he passionately celebrated with the team-mates and fans.
The Belgium is still regaining full fitness, and Hiddink believes it is a step-by-step process that will see Hazard get back to his very best.
Signs of the winger’s brilliance were present in his cameo role against Watford in the week; the Blues had lacked any real enthusiasm going forward, but as Chelsea’s number 10 entered the fray it was an entirely different game.
Despite the drought, Hazard suggested that good performances should not be overlooked just because he would not find himself on the scoresheet.
I’d played some very good games, at Manchester United, at Tottenham Hotspur, but they’d lacked a goal. There’ve been times when I could have scored myself, but I’ve played a pass to a team-mate instead. It never became an obsession for me to score at all costs. I’ve always said that I’m not a big scorer, I’m a worker. But you can’t escape you’ve not scored and it’s already January, so last Sunday was a bit of a relief.
I don’t think my morale was down, but it plays on your mind a bit. Everything went so well in the past. This year, not so much. But you have to tell yourself that football is like that. I’ve had more ups than downs in my career. All you can do is keep working. You still have to take enjoyment out of what you’re doing and things will turn, and my smile has always been there. In good moments and bad. I’m somebody who can laugh even at myself. That happens now and again, when I’ve made a mess of really simple things. I say to the other guys in the dressing-room: ‘Bloody hell, did you see what I did then?’
Hazard spoke on the influence of Didier Drogba, who he believes to be “like a big brother”, offering advice and support to the Belgium by text or phone call.
This is the first time this has happened to me, but it was always going to happen at some stage. You have to learn from it. I’m a human being, not a machine.”
The 25-year-old, who has been a professional since the age of 16, has now accumulated more professional appearances for club and country (446) than Cristiano Ronaldo (407) and Lionel Messi (431) had done by the same age.
Hazard suggests this may have had an impact on his progression at Chelsea, but admits he should know better after four years in the Premier League.
But pressure has been there for five years because I’m always the man people look at. Maybe this season a bit more than last year, given last season was exceptional. We knew Chelsea would be the team to beat this year. That made life harder, but it doesn’t explain everything. Personally, it’s nice to have a good season, but to follow it up again is even better still.
This is my fourth year in English football so, maybe, a spell like this was always on the cards. Maybe I should have seen it coming. It’s been an accumulation of things: a bit of tiredness, a bit of this, a bit of that. I’m not looking for excuses. And it’s been an important period in my development. I’ve learned from it. Like with the injuries. I’ve been used to the kicks, they’re normal. I know how to protect myself. I’ve learned that over the years, but I’d hardly experienced this number of little injuries before, and it’s about learning if you are rushing back too early, or if you’re properly fit and ready to come back.
The prospect of a season without Champions League football would be difficult for the club, admits Hazard – the competition that drew him to Chelsea in four years ago.
Playing in the Champions League was important to me. So, if Chelsea hadn’t won it, I doubt I would have signed. But, this year, we’ll be where we deserve to be. If we’re not in the Champions League, we’ll not have deserved to be in it. We’ll not have done enough to make the top four. You can eat away at 10 or 11 points very quickly, but it’s easier if you still have 30 matches to play. We only have 14 so I think the Premier League is finished. So we’ll have to win [the European Cup] to qualify. Why not? Look at 2012. That’s why I always say we have to target the Champions League.
I’ve never been one to deliver speeches in the dressing room, like a John Terry, Frank Lampard or Drogba, but I’ve always tried to lead in my own way on the field: demanding the ball, trying to make a difference. The day I’m 100% again, I’m convinced Chelsea will perform better too. It’s up to me to raise my level again.
