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Eden Hazard and Willian are both world class players in their own right. They have proven themselves for Chelsea FC and their respective countries time and time again. Amidst interest from various clubs, let us compare stats to find out which of these players is more important to Chelsea FC.
Eden Hazard
Chelsea acquired the services of Eden Hazard for £32 million in 2012. Interestingly, Chelsea beat Manchester United to the signature of Hazard as the Belgian preferred signing for the then Champions League winners.
Hazard has represented Chelsea in 208 Premier League matches and, has 69 goals and 39 assists to his name. He was named the PFA Player of the Year in 2014/15, a year in which Chelsea also lifted the Premier League trophy. The talismanic winger won the Premier League with Chelsea for the second time in 2016/17.
He has been linked to Real Madrid for a long time and things have only intensified at the Bernabeu followin the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Evening Standard claims that Hazard is favourite to replace Ronaldo ahead of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
Willian
Willian was also bought by Chelsea for exactly £32 million in 2013. He was all set to join Tottenham and even had a Spurs medical, before Chelsea swooped in the last minute and hijacked the deal.
Willian has played 166 matches for Chelsea in the Premier League, with 25 goals and 20 assists to his name. The Brazilian is an underrated player in the Premier League. He out shone Neymar while representing Brazil in the match against Mexico in the recently concluded World Cup.
Willian has attracted massive bids from Barcelona and Manchester United in the ongoing transfer window. The Catalan giants saw a bid in excess of £55 million rejected by the Blues, as reported by the Sunday Express.
Who is better?
Hazard has played 42 games more than Willian in the Premier League but the Belgian has more than double the number of goals the Brazilian has scored. It would be wrong to conclude that Hazard is a better player after looking only at the goal tally of the pair as they are both different types of players.
Willian is more of a play-maker and Hazard is more of a goal scorer. The Belgian has often been deployed as a second striker who plays just behind the main centre forward. At times, he has also played as the main striker. Willian is at his best on the right flank. It is also interesting to note that Hazard has missed 30 big chances compared to Willian's nine.
Both players are more-or-less of the same height and don't score a lot of goals with their heads, so a comparison in that aspect is also not practical.
Both Hazard and Willian are equally important to Chelsea and it would be a foolish move to let either of them go. As Chelsea prepare for a transition into a new era under the newly appointed Maurizio Sarri, it is very important for them to hold on to their best players. Sarri has admitted that its not entirely up to him to decide the fate of the two players though he would love to have them in his arsenal, as reported by Fox Sports. Only time will tell if Chelsea is able to hold on to these two prolific players and challenge for the title in the upcoming Premier League season.
