physical breakdown
his body is falling apart
Eden Hazard | "It's time to enjoy life drinking beers"
- Thread starter Samid
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
his body is falling apart
You would think they would stop this denial now he's no threat to them anymore but they seem to be doubling down, so odd!
The small pond being the...Premier league?
Maybe that is proof that a lot of people just genuinely never rated him quite as highly as you seem to think they should?
If that's the case then that just shows the sad obsession with stat padding these days. If Hazard decided to shoot everytime he was in a semi realistic position he would have probably ended up with 30 goals but would have been an inferior alrounder because of it.
Kevin Phillips would be considered better than Bergkamp if they were both playing today, that makes me feel sad tbh.
Nah, not in my eyes.
So?
I just don't rate him as much as others, good player but nowhere near as good as he is heralded to be.
Hazard was a good player, no doubt and I would have loved him at United, but a quick Google search of 'best all-time Premier league players' or 'all time best premier league xi' shows few mentions of Hazard at all. On the left, you can mainly find Giggs, Pires or Mane. On the right it's typically Beckham or Ronaldo. The S*n does have him in a 'best foreign all-time xi', mind you so you will find someone who agrees with you - but this is likely not the source you'd want supporting your argument!
In what sense? We didn't want to sell him.
Do you classify David Silva as a Premier League great? Or just a good player also?.
The way I look at it is his position and the formation you want to use for a PL All Star XI. CR7 obviously goes into a RWF Position if you play a 433, while Beckham does in a 442 (Beckham would probably be a WB in today's game.) So, for me Hazard is kind of the bench option for CR7 if playing a 433, while CR7 would have to go in the front two in a 442. However, I think MFB has been saying he is a great, not the best PL RWF ever, which I think is true depending on how you want to slice things.
As for Hazard v Mane, I think it comes down to a taste thing. Personally, I think if you like more free spirited players you'll take Hazard, whereas if you want a player who is about end product and pressing like crazy, you go Mane. Personally I prefer Hazard type players as I find they're a dying breed.
Don't go bringing logic into the discussion
The only people who rate Hazard that highly are Chelsea fans, I mean surely no one needs me to point out the obvious reason behind this
Good player undoubtedly, a PL great? Not for me. Talking Chelsea players only Cech, Terry, Lampard they're PL greats
Other than longevity what do they have over him? As a football player Hazard is better than they were.
I mean, you were the one arguing that he didn't pass enough, which is fundamentally incorrect.
Ashley Cole and Hazard belong in that top bracket of all-time Chelsea players. Not much between Hazard and Zola for most talented Chelsea player I've ever watched.Don't go bringing logic into the discussion
The only people who rate Hazard that highly are Chelsea fans, I mean surely no one needs me to point out the obvious reason behind this
Good player undoubtedly, a PL great? Not for me. Talking Chelsea players only Cech, Terry, Lampard they're PL greats
Well it's impossible to compare a GK and CB in terms of talent isn't it
I was actually going to mention Zola myself but figured it would be too polarising of a statement so saved myself the backlash
Cole? He's a PL great yes, without doubt the best LB the leagues seen though I'm probably not alone in thinking his best form was actually for Arsenal
Really? I always thought Cole went up a level at Chelsea - he became far more positionally sound & learned to read the game far better than when he was younger. He lost half a step (and the ACL tear didn't help in that regard) but for me his peak as a 1v1 defender and as an overlapping threat both were at Chelsea.I was actually going to mention Zola myself but figured it would be too polarising of a statement so saved myself the backlash
Cole? He's a PL great yes, without doubt the best LB the leagues seen though I'm probably not alone in thinking his best form was actually for Arsenal
tbf, this is a pretty good selection overall (although Van Dijk shouldn't be in it):
The Giggs inclusion is irony at its finest given his numbers. If he played today he'd be getting critised for "not being ruthless enough" or the all the other nonsense claims put on Hazard because he doesn't shoot 20 times a game to pad out his tally.
If you like to compare apples and pears at the market...
He's a great for me.
Hazard has proven his level by failing to deliver anything meaningful at Madrid unfortunately.
Another one barely getting the credit he deserves because he hasn't got a padded out goal tally.
If all these players played today Lukaku and Kevin Phillips would be deemed better than Drogba and Bergkamp and all the stat padding midfielders would be deemed superior to Iniesta and Xavi!
I'm baffled about the OTT defending of Hazard on here from Chelsea fans. No one's saying he wasn't a good player but many don't feel he was an absolute great and from what we are seeing in La Liga that's a thought that's being absolutely vindicated.
Even Bale went over to La Liga and performed (discounting how that's panned out longer term) but Hazard has been garbage. Even in the PL he always struck me as a fair weather player. Flat track bully.
Hes no where near the C Ronaldo bracket and will be in a much bigger pool of talent a few levels below. In the future he'll likely be spoke about at Chelsea only.
Even Bale went over to La Liga and performed (discounting how that's panned out longer term) but Hazard has been garbage. Even in the PL he always struck me as a fair weather player. Flat track bully.
Hes no where near the C Ronaldo bracket and will be in a much bigger pool of talent a few levels below. In the future he'll likely be spoke about at Chelsea only.
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Agreed that he's been poor at RM but he's been absolutely blighted by injuries. Doesn't make the signing any less disastrous but I don't think it's reflective of his quality.
that’s super debatable
And you've literally just demonstrated exactly why he gets "OTT defending", calling him a flat track bully when he repeatedly ripped the big six apart, made a big difference in finals and single handedly got us over the line In a title race (under Mourinho) Is ludicrous.
Its clear Hazard time in Madrid has been disrupted with injuries, to call him a flat track bully is a bit of a joke
Fair enough, i always find it odd David Silva gets treated differently to Hazard. I struggle to understand what makes Silva great but not Hazard.
What did Silva do better than Hazard?
They are good numbers but I thought we were being discouraged not to use them as a benchmark? I'm not disputing he's a good player but he's in amongst many good players we've had in the PL. That's the point.
Ripped the big 6 apart is sensationalism at it's finest. As above really.
That's how I see him.
You're asking me to compare two entirely different players. Like Van der Sar and Drogba.
I can't be bothered to go through every game (his record at Anfield alone would take me all day) so I'll stick to the finals he played for us (all Vs the big six).
Played in 4, won 3 and 2 of them were won largely if not solely thanks to him.
I like to judge players with my own eyes as they don't lie. As you said, figures can.
I'm somewhat shocked at his sudden demise
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Hazard being a PL great shouldn't even be up for debate. I mean just off looking at PFA player of the year awards, he won one and finished second twice. Just looking at the list of winners for the last 20 years, they are all PL greats other than Mahrez.
He's also won the league twice arguably being the team's best player in both seasons. Add the fact that he's probably the best big game player in PL history and I don't even see how it's in doubt that he's a PL great.
He had a horrendously shite season but that was an anomaly and strange year all round for Chelsea. I can only imagine its due to the obsession with numbers over performance that people are doubting his standing as a PL great.
He's also won the league twice arguably being the team's best player in both seasons. Add the fact that he's probably the best big game player in PL history and I don't even see how it's in doubt that he's a PL great.
He had a horrendously shite season but that was an anomaly and strange year all round for Chelsea. I can only imagine its due to the obsession with numbers over performance that people are doubting his standing as a PL great.
It will forever tarnish him too
Well, yes I'd argue that Hazard's impact went well beyond goal scoring and assisting, but I also think it's not correct to call him a flat track bully when by anyone's standard he produced exceptionally well against other top 6 sides. It's not like the only times he scored was against relegation fodder.
Very good in premier league....just a little bit missing at CL level compared to other Chelsea greats in that era like Lampard and Drogba who stood up in Semi finals.
Which was his best tournament for Belgium, World cup 2018? France nulified him pretty well in the SF.
Which was his best tournament for Belgium, World cup 2018? France nulified him pretty well in the SF.
sadly
A bit unlucky with injuries there too. Had only just barely been declared fit for the semi in 13/14 vs. Atletico. Had absolutely horrendous luck in the draws from there as well.
People will make allowances for whoever they want. If stats helps with uplifting/discredit their player of choice, then stats are this crucial aspect that cannot be ignored. If the stats contradicts or don't fully back up the actual point, then we need to discuss the intangibles and focus less on silly stats to make the point, and we're all inconsistent in how we apply these criteria.
I think Hazard was a great player at Chelsea who will be remembered as a PL great, but if someone wants to hold up his scoring stats as a stick to beat him with, that's cool.
As in even though you didn’t want to sell it was all quick and painless in the end. I doubt you could have sold him for much more and the transfer couldn’t have gone any worse for Madrid. It seems you sold him at the perfect time. You guys basically did a Torres/shevchenko/higuain etc to someone else... and you’ve reinvested a lot of money since.