19 year old Lille winger Eden Hazard has been working hard trying to secure a move to Arsenal either this January or next summer. The Belgian international has placed European clubs on red alert by claiming he wants to leave Lille in the near future, with Arsenal being his preferred location. Hazard has a huge reputation, being described as the new Cristiano Ronaldo. Do Arsenal really need to sign the player and would North London be the wrong destination for the player anyway?
Hazard has been impressed by the record of Arsene Wenger for bringing through promising youngsters to the highest level early in their careers, having had similar success with the likes of Samir Nasri, Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie. Talking to Sky Sports, Hazard spoke of this admiration for Arsene Wenger.
“But there are teams like Arsenal,where youngsters can grow more easily into the first team and make their mark. “If I do leave at the end of the season, I don’t want to go somewhere where I will be on the bench. I am young, not 20 until next month, and it will be difficult to break through in a team like Real, where (Cristiano) Ronaldo and Kaka are my competitors.”
The problem for Eden Hazard is that he is slight in stature. He may be the most technically sound young player on the market but how effective will be in the Premier League? You have to look at Jose Antonio Reyes for a comparison. The Spaniard came to England with a huge reputation but he couldn’t adapt to the physical nature of the Premier League. Hazard will struggle as well, and naturally he will be played out wide. Why would a player like Hazard want to move to a league where he would struggle to compete and would be played out of position? It makes little sense, and Arsenal can’t afford to waste money on a player who may or may not be able to survive in the Premier League.
As well as this, if Arsenal did sign Hazard, in all probability he would start his career wide left. Arsenal have Andrey Arshavin playing there at the moment, and whatever the reputation of the young Belgian, why would Arsene Wenger be looking to replace the Russian international? If we compare the two players’ records this season, we see Arshavin is far more effective. Playing in the Premier League, Arshavin has scored three goals and contributed eight assists. Compare this to Hazard who has scored two and only created four in the lesser French league. Arshavin is playing in a tougher league with better defenders – had he been playing for Lille this season his record would be better than Hazard’s. Sure, Hazard is young but that can’t be an excuse all the time. Arshavin is a far better player than the Belgian and Arsenal would be crazy to risk his future at the club.
For the player himself, he should be looking at moving to Spain. He does not have the physical attributes for Arsenal to risk paying a vast some of money for him. In Spain he could become the player that he wants to be. He can play through the middle, his skill would be on show in a far more technical league. Hazard has to look at what has happened to players like Reyes. Arsenal may give him a better opportunity to play first team football at a top club earlier than at Real Mardid or Barcelona but he wouldn’t last in the Premier League. It is not a indictment on the player, more the way we want our Premier League to play. Without a doubt I would love to see Eden Hazard in the Premier League but because of the excitement levels we strive for, we will always miss out on these players.
Arsenal may be interested in the technical ability of Hazard and the player may be drawn by the record of Arsene Wenger, but the two would be a bad match. Arsene Wenger should be looking at using any funds for Hazard to buy an effective defensive midfielder – someone who can tackle. Arsenal need to address this problem before anything else. A player of the stature of Lassana Diaara or Felipe Melo would fit the bill, rather than buy an inexperienced player like Hazard.
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