Hazard weight, fitness source of Madrid struggles - Wenger
Former Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger claims that Eden Hazard's struggles to adapt at Real Madrid were down to issues with weight and fitness.
Real Madrid fans are still waiting to see the best of Eden Hazard.
Much expectation surrounded Hazard following his 100-million-euro move from Chelsea in the summer. But the Belgian international has so far been underwhelming in his first season in Spain.
And while his first, and still only goal against Granada in early October may have felt like somewhat of a turning point for Madridistas and huge relief for the player himself, the talented forward still seems far off the player he was at Stamford Bridge.
With the questions naturally being asked about Hazard, Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane had called for patience with his new Galáctico some weeks ago, claiming that it had taken three months for he himself to settle at Juventus back in 1996.
Wenger: “Hazard came too heavy” at Real Madrid
However, Arsene Wenger, who had closely watched Hazard’s rise in the Premier League as coach of Chelsea rivals Arsenal, believes his struggles for form at Madrid were due to his weight and lack of fitness.
“I feel we have not seen the Hazard we’ve known in England yet,” Wenger told beIN Sports.
“He was not physically fit after he was injured. Is he a little bit… he’s not a player usually impressed by anything, but he looked to me like he does not have the same confidence he had at Chelsea.’
“But I think it was more down to physical reasons. He came too heavy, like we read in the papers. If you want to make a horse lose a race, putting two kilos on a horse of 500 kilos is enough.”