Eden Hazard should have left Chelsea sooner, according to Gus Poyet.
Real Madrid are struggling to get any sort of impact out of Hazard owing to his woeful fitness record.
After a record-breaking transfer, one would have hoped for him to reach a certain level. Real handed him the number seven jersey after arrival but Hazard should have signed in the summer of 2018 itself, when Cristiano Ronaldo departed.
“It hurts me a lot in this case. The year Cristiano Ronaldo left was the ideal time to replace him, he had had a great season with Chelsea,” Poyet told Radio MARCA.
“When Hazard arrived in Madrid, he suddenly looked older. I don’t think the style of play is the problem with this player, neither is the mentality; I would say that it’s physically.
“He has paid the price for some physical problems that have not allowed him to return and have meant he has not returned to his best conditions.
“One of my maxims as a coach is to put players on the pitch with minimal or no excuses, and I don’t think Hazard has ever been like that. There was always some excuse: he was at 60 percent, the team was not good….
“It’s not Zidane’s fault, the player is depending on himself to face this great challenge of turning it around.”
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