Real Madrid: Eden Hazard’s return and 5 burning questions from a 0-0 draw vs. Real Betis

How did Eden Hazard look?

Eden Hazard made his return to the lineup after suffering an injury against Elche, which was his first appearance back from the previous injury. Thankfully, we have no heard word of an aggravation from his latest tune-up appearance, so that’s the biggest positive, especially compared to the Elche match.

Better yet, Hazard played well in his 15 minutes on the pitch. In fact, per WhoScored.com, Hazard recorded two key passes in the limited playing time. That’s really good and should give Madridistas optimism that he can be an X-Factor against his former employers, Chelsea, in the Champions League semifinals.

Hazard is still Real’s best winger, no matter how much some fans bizarrely wanted to slander him. He is not to blame for his injuries. Hazard is the victim of bad luck, just like so many players have been this season.

The Belgian looked so much better in this cameo appearance than he did in some of his previous injury returns. It seems like he is more confident and recovered, and I’m glad Zinedine Zidane and Real Madrid took a more cautious approach. They could have played him against Getafe or even sooner, but they decided to wait. And I can only hope the wait pays off. This positive performance has me feeling optimistic.

Check out his backheel and scoop passes to Marcelo for some fun highlights.