Eden Hazard came out on the last 15 minutes against Elche, and it was hoped that he could play off the bench in Los Blancos’ Champions League tie against Atalanta on Tuesday night, but that is no longer possible.
Zidane on Hazard: Something is happening
Zinedine Zidane revealed that Eden Hazard has suffered just days after making his comeback in Real Madrid’s 2-1 win to Elche. Hazard came out on the last 15 minutes against Elche, and it was hoped that he could play off the bench in Los Blancos’ Champions League tie against Atalanta on Tuesday night, but that is no longer possible. “Something is happening,” Zidane revealed when asked about Hazard during a pre-match press conference on Monday. “Eden has never been injured in his career, and this is new for him. I cannot explain more. We all want to help him. I hope Hazard will be with us soon.” When asked if the pressure is starting to build on Hazard, Zidane still believes in the Belgian’s success at Real Madrid, even with a different coach.
Sooner or later, Hazard will come good
“I don’t know if it will be with me because he has a long contract,” he explained. “But sooner or later, he will come good. We have to be patient. I ask the fans to wait for Hazard. We know a player he is. The fans want to see Eden Hazard play, like the club, coach and teammates. We have to be patient and wait.” Given the number of injuries that Real Madrid have had to deal with this season, is there a problem with what they are doing? “I don’t think there is a problem,” stated Zidane. “We have very literate people here who are very close to the players. We are looking for what causes it, of course. After all, these are the things that happen in football. We talked about the pre-season, the games, the mental aspect. There are excellent people here for the players.”
Real Madrid have players to play a great game
“We are recovering players; now, there are fewer injuries.” One of the players that Los Blancos will miss on Tuesday night due to the suspension is Casemiro, but his coach is not worried about his absence. “He won’t be there, and there are other players who will play and who will do well,” Zidane said. “I never worry about these things. We have players to play a great game”. Real Madrid have a 1-0 lead from their first match against Atalanta, but Zidane is keen to keep his players from getting complacent. “We have to start from scratch,” said the Frenchman.
“We haven’t done anything and we have to show a lot of things to get through the tie. So we shouldn’t think that with the first leg, we’ve done it, of course not. It is the final. It is a second leg, and to get through, we have to play a great game. They are rivals with a lot of strengths.”