Paul Merson is
convinced Chelsea’s wouldn’t think twice about bringing Eden Hazard back to
Stamford Bridge if the opportunity presented itself.
The Belgian enjoyed a
glittering seven-year spell at Chelsea in
which he helped fire the club to two Premier League titles, two Europa Leagues,
one FA Cup and a League Cup. In the summer of 2019, Hazard made the switch to
Real Madrid in a deal worth €100million but a string of
injuries have halted his progress in Spain.
The 30-year-old has
managed four goals and seven assists in a total of just 36 games for the La
Liga club and last year, he admitted his debut season at Madrid was the ‘worst’
of his career.
With Chelsea set to
face Zinedine Zidane’s side in the Champions League semi-finals, Hazard could
play against his former club for the first time since he departed.
The winger recently
returned to full training after his latest injury setback and has only played
once since January.
However, former
Arsenal winger Merson believes Chelsea would take Hazard back in a heartbeat.
‘Eden Hazard could
miss out on a reunion with Chelsea even if he’s fit – but they would take him
back like a shot,’ Merson told the Daily Star.
‘I’d be surprised if
he plays when they meet Real Madrid in the Champions League semi finals.
He’s hardly played
all season. ‘And why would you change the team that beat Liverpool so
comfortably? The wingers were both electric. ‘If Hazard ever gets back to the
form he was in at Chelsea, he can cause havoc. But I just don’t see it.
‘Sometimes you need
to start well when you make a big move and he didn’t, and it’s all gone
downhill for him.
‘But Chelsea would
take him back. No doubt. Before he left, he was on a different planet.
‘It’s sad to see him
not doing it in Madrid. But they brought him in to replace Cristiano Ronaldo’s
goals and he was never going to do that. ‘You wish Chelsea had a clause where
they could take him back because you would do that all day long to see him back
in the Premier League.’
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