Hazard's last bullet

The quarterfinals were the last stop for Belgium in this Euro 2020 that is played in 2021 and in which the Red Devils They have once again been on the verge of doing something important, shining for the moment for their game and their potential, but without rowing enough to even reach the final. It is true that injuries played a fundamental role in their fall to Italy (2-1), with a diminished Kevin de Bruyne and with an Eden Hazard directly in the stands, perpetuating his losing streak when it comes to physical problems.

Hazard now starts his summer holidays, the 21 days stipulated by Real Madrid for all the players who were or they are playing international tournaments (Eurocup or America's Cup), so their return date will be between Friday, July 23, and Monday, 26 (it will depend on whether the travel day of the Belgian expedition on Saturday is counted between the days of break); It is likely, falling close to a weekend where the team is possibly resting, that Hazard's return does not arrive until Monday 26, the day when he will face Ancelotti, his new coach.

A day that Madrid waits reluctantly, in light of what happened in the two previous preseason, in which Hazard arrived overweight and far from the optimal physical point for a footballer of his level. Related or not, he started both seasons with muscle injuries that hampered his performance from the start, although in that section the 2020-21 season was undoubtedly the most painful: up to 11 different ailments, including the coronavirus, registered last year.

Hazard's numbers in Madrid

The white club hopes that this time Hazard takes care of himself during his holidays, regulates his diet well and that the physical work he does is well focused on solving the muscular problem with which he ended the European Championship and that prevented him from playing against Italy in the quarterfinals. Madrid made a great effort for him in 2019 (He paid 100 million when he only had one year left on his contract as long as Zidane could work with him from the start of the preseason) and so far he has made little profit from that investment: five goals and eight assists in 43 games over two seasons.

Last season, in addition, he was marked by the Madrid fans for his image after the elimination of the Champions League against Chelsea, laughing with Zouma and Mendy minutes after having stayed at the gates of a new European Cup final for the white. An image for which he had to apologize the next day, although it remains to be seen how the Bernabéu receives him next season, in which the return of the public to the stadiums is expected without restrictions. The 2021-22 is Hazard's last bullet in Madrid.