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Belgium manager Roberto Martinez has praised Real Madrid winger Eden Hazard for overcoming his injury woes.
The former Chelsea winger has been sent home after Belgium secured their qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. With Hazard missing the Belgium versus Wales match, questions were asked about why the Real Madrid winger was sent home.
Martinez praised him in a press conference, saying:
“The plan was that if we qualified for the World Cup, Hazard would play only one game and we played him for 60 minutes (against Estonia). Now he can concentrate on Real Madrid given the schedule of games that his club has coming up.”
Speaking about Hazard's fitness, the Belgian coach said:
“Hazard is medically in the best moment since he arrived at Real Madrid.”
Martinez added:
“Eden is a leader, but he is in a very difficult situation. For him, it’s important to play with Real Madrid to recover the rhythm of games, so playing a game with us was ideal for Hazard to recover part of this rhythm.”
Hazard has now returned to Real Madrid to continue to work on his match sharpness so he can deliver more in the coming days for Los Blancos.
Eden Hazard is yet to fire for Real Madrid
Real Madrid signed Eden Hazard in 2019 for an initial £89 million with £34m add-ons. He was one of the best players at Chelsea prior to his dream move to Spain.
Upon joining Real Madrid, he was expected to fill the role of Cristiano Ronaldo at the Bernabeu. However, Hazard's move has turned out to be rather anti-climactic.
He has not only failed to score and assist consistently but has also been unable to keep himself fit. Hazard has turned up to pre-season overweight in back-to-back seasons and has not been the same player since leaving Stamford Bridge.
A true reflection of Hazard's lack of impact is his stats in El Clasico. Of the six Clasicos conducted since 2019, Hazard has only been fit for only one. Even in that game, the winger was an unused substitute.
Hazard might return to the Premier League next year
Newcastle United found wealthy owners last month and are planning to raid the transfer market in January. With Real Madrid looking to make funds available to sign Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland next summer, a potential deal for Hazard could be on the cards.
Hazard could be a talisman at Newcastle and help them fight off relegation this season. He has the skills required to shine in the Premier League, as was evidenced by his time at Chelsea.
However, the Magpies will likely have to pay Real Madrid a substantial fee as Hazard still has two years left on his contract at the Bernabeu.
