Eden Hazard was forced to play up front once again for Chelsea, and once again it didn’t look like a smart plan.
The Belgian was isolated up top and struggled to get involved in the game. Chelsea dominated possession for long periods but Hazard was barely able to conjure a spark.
His full stats for the game were handily collected by Nizaar Kinsella here:
Hazard was seriously shut out by Arsenal tonight:
2 shots
0 on target
1 key pass
80% pass completion in the opponents half
35.3% of 17 duels won
26 times possession lost. #CFC #ARSCHE— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) January 19, 2019
That doesn’t make for pretty reading.
There were even signs in the second half that his attitude was fading too. He frustrated and lost at times. We just have to hope that the addition of a striker that Sarri trusts will allow him to move Eden Hazard back to the left wing where he’s happiest.
There he can get more touches, influence the game more, and hopefully begin providing assists to Gonzalo Higuain. It can’y come soon enough, because the Hazard as a false 9 experiment needs to end soon.
