Real Madrid News
Out-of-favour Real Madrid winger will discuss his future at the club next month
It has been a difficult road for Eden Hazard at Real Madrid. Dubbed the next Galactico when he arrived from Chelsea in a deal worth €115 million in 2019, the Belgian has struggled to live up to the billing.
Relentless injury problems, fitness issues, and a lack of confidence have dominated his stint at the Santiago Bernabeu thus far, relegating him to a mere squad player role.
The winger has found himself behind Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo Goes, Marco Asensio and Federico Valverde in the pecking order this season and has just played a measly seven matches across all competitions.
Given his lack of effectiveness and impact, The Athletic claims that Real Madrid have tried to offload him in each of the last four transfer windows from the summer of 2021 to the ongoing winter window of 2023.
However, they understand that a sale or even a loan exit this month is unlikely as the player is reluctant to leave mid-season. But an exit could be on the cards come the end of the season, with the Belgian himself admitting as much in an interview in the recent past.
Now, the aforementioned report from The Athletic is claiming that Hazard will sit down and discuss his future with his two agents, who will be visiting him in Madrid next month.
There have been speculations about a return to Chelsea and a switch to Newcastle United in the past, but the report clarifies that there is no truth to any of those claims and none of it came from the player or his representatives.
Hazard is on a massive contract at Real Madrid, pocketing around €15 million net per season, including image rights and bonuses. But, given how less he has played in recent times and his low impact, Los Blancos remain keen on moving him on.
Hence, the player will discuss his future with his agents next month to take note of his options for the future. There have been rumours that Saudi Arabian giants Al Nassr, who recently signed Cristiano Ronaldo, want to bring in Hazard as well.
A move to the MLS, following in the footsteps of Gareth Bale, could also be an option for the former Chelsea wing-wizard.
All in all, a clear decision on his future could emerge once Hazard meets his agents and chalks out his next steps in February.
Real Madrid News
Mourinho talks Carlos Espi, Diomande, Guler, Tchouameni, Atletico Madrid after Elche 2-3 Real Madrid
Real Madrid found another way to win, but Jose Mourinho was hardly celebrating the manner of it.
Carlos Espi’s injury-time strike completed a 3-2 comeback against Elche, rescuing Madrid after they had surrendered control of a game that appeared to be in their hands.
For Mourinho, the result was welcome, but the performance raised a familiar concern.
“When everything seems easy and you let things slide, it’s dangerous. Then the team reacts and wins, but it’s not pleasant.
“The other good thing is that nobody gets bored with these matches. They’re fun,” he began saying.
Mourinho knows what is going wrong
The Portuguese coach was particularly frustrated by another drop in intensity after the interval.
Real Madrid had opportunities to put the game beyond Elche before allowing their advantage to disappear. Mourinho believes that pattern is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
“It seems obvious to me. It’s easy to understand. These are games that are all but over, where we have chances to seal the deal but don’t. After failing to do so, we go from having it easy to losing control.
“If we play poorly from the first minute to the 90th, the concern is huge.
“If we have periods where we’re at our best and others where we’re not proactive, just waiting, lacking intensity… Of course it’s a concern. But we won.”
The win keeps Madrid moving, but Mourinho’s concern is less about the points than the way his team is repeatedly making matches unnecessarily complicated.
Carlos Espi again provided the decisive moment from the bench, although Mourinho knows breaking into the starting XI will be difficult with Mbappé ahead of him.
“He’s a guy who works hard and is very motivated,” Mourinho said.
He then added, “He’s up against a player who’s in a league of his own (Mbappe), and we’re well aware of that.”
Madrid derby comes at a delicate moment
Next up is Atletico Madrid, and Mourinho’s attention is already turning towards the derby.
Rather than focusing on the opposition, he remains concerned about his own side’s ability to manage matches.
“The only explanation I can find is that we can’t keep going like this. We misjudged the opportunities we had, and once they score a goal, everything changes,” explained the Real Madrid coach.
Meanwhile, there were positives to take from individual performances, as Mourinho praised Yan Diomande’s development after another energetic outing.
“He’s improving. Physically, you can tell he has more minutes under his belt. He has a great work ethic and intelligence—he’s done a great job.”
Mourinho refuses to call Guler indispensable
Arda Guler’s importance was also questioned after another fantastic performance, but Mourinho rejected the idea that any player is beyond replacement.
“No, no one is indispensable. We were losing control when I made the substitutions; Vini did a great job on defence, but he was very tired.
“And Arda, who was playing in the number 10 position, was also losing intensity.
“I brought in a fresh Jude and Brahim when we were down 0-2, but I could sense we were losing control. That’s how it goes for us. And then, we brought in the heavy artillery and turned it around.”
Mourinho was also pleased with Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde during Madrid’s strongest spells.
“When the team was playing well, he and Valverde were playing well. They broke through the pressure easily, with skill.
“But the game had two phases—or rather three: one until it was 0–2, another until it was 2–2, and another until the end. They did a good job,” he concluded.
Source: AS
