Real Madrid's Eden Hazard Says He's in 'Good Shape' Following Weight Concerns

Real Madrid star Eden Hazard has said he's in "good shape" and dismissed concerns regarding his weight after some criticism following a slow start at Real Madrid. 

The summer signing has only one goal in 11 outings since arriving at Real.

Hazard, 28, recently spoke to Sky Sports News and dismissed any concerns: "For the last month I've been in good condition with no injuries. I'm in good shape. When I'm on the pitch I will always try to do my best, with Real Madrid or Belgium. I just want to keep this momentum."

The Belgium winger has recently shown signs of improvement after scoring one goal and recording four assists in his last six appearances for Real in all competitions.  

Sport (h/t MailOnline's Glen Williams) reported in July that Hazard had arrived at Real seven kilograms overweight.

More recently, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger appeared on beIN Sports and attributed Hazard's sluggish form in the Spanish capital to his weight:

Real manager Zinedine Zidane is likely to have been more impressed with what Hazard was beginning to produce before the international break and will hope he can pick up where he left off.

The former Chelsea talisman has had direct goal contributions in wins against Granada, Leganes, Eibar and Galatasaray over the past month, but fans might expect more of the man signed to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ex-team-mate Mikel John Obi recently opened up about Hazard's lackadaisical training mentality during their time together at Chelsea, though the end product was rarely lacking when it mattered most:

The forward may be discovering the approach that worked to such good effect at Stamford Bridge and at Lille won't produce the same results at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, where the stakes are even higher.

Zidane said at the beginning of November that he felt he saw clear improvement from his star signing, per AFP's Tom Allnutt:

Another of Hazard's former Chelsea team-mates, Cesc Fabregas, told Radio Marca (h/t Marca) in August that he was surprised the attacker's weight was such a hot topic, adding he had "no doubts" over his quality.

His international form has been far from lacklustre after Hazard scored two goals and assisted another when Belgium beat Russia 4-1 on Saturday—he has been involved in 11 goals in his past seven caps.

Belgium have already secured their place at UEFA Euro 2020, but Hazard could continue his improving form when the Red Devils host Cyprus in their final Group I qualifying fixture on Tuesday.