Why Greed Is the Next Step in Eden Hazard's Evolution
In a match where Barcelona's iconic No. 10 was absent, Chelsea's version was in full effect.
The Blues—reversing their first-half performance from Charlotte, North Carolina vs. Paris Saint-Germain—dominated their Spanish counterparts in the International Champions Cup through the opening 45 minutes.
Eden Hazard, specifically and unsurprisingly (as he is the reigning PFA/FWA Footballer of the Year, Premier League Player of the Season and Chelsea Player of the Season), gave a spellbinding performance in the exciting 2-2 exhibition, which the west Londoners won on penalties.
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"Fantastic individual effort from @HazardEden10! https://t.co/KoCh4JaugH It gets better every time; he has the ball on a string! #CFC
— chelseaTALK (@ChelseaTaIk) July 29, 2015"
Dribbling through what seemed like a sea of yellow shirts, the Belgian international beat the defending La Liga and UEFA Champions League holders from around 12 yards, putting his side ahead within 10 minutes.
Great players make great plays in grand occasions; in front of nearly 80,000 people in Washington D.C., against Barcelona, the fixture being labelled "pre-season" is irrelevant. Hazard made that particular stage his own and was simply superb.
When watching the 24-year-old play football, one is often struck by the obvious technical and physical skill. Hazard's combination of pace, control and balance make him a nightmare for opponents to mark; combined with his footballing brain, he becomes one of the world's best talents.
That said, one can be taken aback further by Hazard's unselfishness.
When forced into making spectacular individual efforts, he has the requisite talent to pull just about anything out of the proverbial hat—witnessed on many occasions—but if given the option between selfish and selfless, the Belgian is the rare prodigy who elects for the latter.
Team-mates likely love that he is willing to share not only the spotlight but goals. He tends to make insane dribbles, then instead of putting shots on frame, frequently decides to pass in and around the 18-yard box—looking for the perfect goal.
Amazingly, for one of the top-five attacking talents in the world, Hazard is perfectly fine using his sublime skill to facilitate goals, not necessarily to score them.
Society has conflicting notions of which is best, hence there are differing opinions on how the fresh superstar should play. As children, we are told "sharing is caring," yet into adulthood we realise capitalism does not always favour those who share.
As it stands, Hazard is essentially Robin Hood—just stealing from himself to feed the poor.
He has no problem sacrificing his own statistics for what he deems better options (i.e. frequently involving his team-mates), but what if some brave human were to tell the 24-year-old: "Eden, your team-mates are not as good at football as you are!"
Could that change his perspective?
Surely Hazard must know his talent supersedes many of those around him, but what if some brave human were to convince him that instead of finding perfect goals, he would be better off using his skill for himself—not completely turning off his magnanimous nature, but dialling it down.
Might Jose Mourinho be the brave human? Could the Portuguese download a program into the 24-year-old that further convinces him of his own extraordinary ability—giving him the confidence to both fail and succeed?
For Hazard to take the next step in his evolutionary process, he must become a capitalist footballer.
Any chance to shoot: He shoots.
Any dribble he can make: He makes.
Any game he can control: He dominates.
No more passing in hopes of a better option; rather taking the option at hand or, in this case, at feet—specifically his own.
"Understand your limitations" is frequently cited when telling a person they have bitten off more than they can chew, but the same phrase could also be used for telling someone they are not chewing enough.
Hazard realising the extent of his capability, and being selfish enough to try, would make him a footballing alien: a player who thinks of options nobody else can and also possesses the physical prowess to accomplish the thought.
Barca's iconic No. 10, Lionel Messi, is one such player; likewise Real Madrid's No. 7, Cristiano Ronaldo. Both players take every opportunity to punish their opponents and rarely give team-mates an opportunity to fail when they can do the job themselves.
The Belgian's next progression is understanding that him shooting is normally a better choice than the next man; this adjustment would not only improve his career but elevate Chelsea in the same breath.
Anyone who watches Hazard on the ball can tell within seconds something is different, there are not many footballers with his particular package; thus, spending the next 10 years of his career attempting to make others stronger, rather than pulling them up himself, seems a colossal waste.
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.
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