Real Madrid: Be patient with Eden Hazard’s performances

Eden Hazard has received no shortage of criticism after a subdued performance against PSG in the Champions League, but Real Madrid fans must be patient with their new superstar.

Thanks to a soleus muscle injury, Eden Hazard didn’t make his regular-season debut for Real Madrid until Matchday 4. Even then, Hazard didn’t start the game, as he was brought in as a substitute. But his impact was immediate. Hazard lit up Levante’s defense by drawing three fouls in just 30 minutes, taking defenders on as only he can, and setting up teammates. He even created a pair of dangerous chances for himself in just a half hour.

The Belgian’s strong debut understandably created optimism for his potential impact against PSG in Real’s Champions League opener. However, Hazard’s impact was minimal, as Real were woefully outplayed and outcoached in a 3-0 loss to a PSG team that was missing several key players (including Kylian Mbappe and Neymar).

As Hazard himself stated after the 3-2 win over Levante, there is even more pressure to succeed at Real Madrid than at other top clubs, including Chelsea. There is a special responsibility when wearing the fabled white kit of Madrid, so the fanbase can be particularly unforgiving, even when it’s one off performance from a superstar player.

Real signed Hazard for nine figures this summer to be a game-changer, and he is a rare talent. Only a handful of players in the world are capable of setting up teammates, drawing fouls, dribbling to create chances from nothing, and finishing as a winger like Hazard. There are perhaps only two other players, Mbappe and Neymar, who can do all three to that level.

Hazard is Real’s most talented player, and, in a sense, he is already one of their most important players alongside captain Sergio Ramos, whose absence against PSG was certainly felt. So when Hazard didn’t score, assist, or otherwise make a profound impact on the proceedings, he became a target for criticism.

This is, of course, entirely unfair. How much could Hazard realistically do in a game in which his midfield was overrun, his defense was being picked apart by a focused Angel Di Maria, and his manager failed to create an adequate gameplan against a tactically astute team?

But even under the surface of Hazard’s underwhelming performances, silver linings can be found. According to WhoScored.com, Hazard led the team with four dribbles completed and drew three fouls. Their ratings can sometimes be misleading due to their inability to track off-ball statistics, as in the case of Toni Kroos’s relatively decent rating in this game, but it is interesting that Hazard was WhoScored’s highest-rated player on the Real side.

As per usual, Hazard did a great job of taking on defenders, drawing fouls, and putting in the work in an attacking sense. He showed a budding relationship with young left back Ferland Mendy, who put in a strong shift defensively due to an admittedly light matchup.

But what was missing from Hazard’s play was the final ball and the trademark incisiveness. He couldn’t quite hook up with Karim Benzema, and the Real Madrid attack doesn’t quite have the fluid interplay among Benzema, Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez, and Hazard in the final third.

This is understandable, though. Hazard has only played 30 regular-season minutes for Real, and he and Bale were not on the pitch at the same time at Levante. That doesn’t excuse some of the poor decision-making Hazard had, but it does explain the lack of an end product and some of the seemingly aimless dribbling. Hazard is still trying to figure out the tendencies of the players around him.

Moreover, he isn’t 100-percent physically, as he’s just recently returned from a muscle injury. Once he recovers fully and learns more about the players around him, Hazard will blossom for Real Madrid just as he did at Chelsea. After all, the signs are, perhaps silently, there.