Eden Hazard, “Chelsea are not meant to play football.”

Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

In the post-match interview following the defeat to Atlético Madrid, Eden Hazard appeared to give a very harsh statement towards José Mourinho and his tactics, where Hazard claims he has the only one given attacking freedom.

“Chelsea is not made to play football,” Hazard said.  “We’re good on the counter, a little bit like Real against Bayern. Often, I’m asked to do it all by myself and it’s not easy.”

Mourinho has repeatedly come under fire this entire season from the media and from other players and managers for his defensively-minded tactics, especially after the victory at Anfield where Liverpool boss claimed that Chelsea had “parked two buses”.

However, it should be noted that it was because of Hazard’s failure to track the runs of Atleti’s Juanfran that led to two Madrid goals. Mourinho hit back at Hazard in his pre-match interview for the upcoming Norwich City fixture.

“When the comments come from a player like Eden it’s normal because he’s not the kind of player to sacrifice himself for the team,” Mourinho said.

“He’s not mentally ready to look to his left-back and leave his life for him.”

With persistent rumors of a possible transfer to French outfit PSG, this end of season rift between Hazard and Mourinho will only add fuel to that fire. This rift is also an interesting development after an interview that Hazard gave to BBC Sport in February, where he praised his boss for turning him into a team player.

It will be interesting to see if Mourinho does include Hazard in the Starting XI or will the Belgian playmaker be relegated to the bench in the first match after receiving the PFA Young Player of the Year award. It will also be interesting to see how Hazard does respond to Mourinho’s criticism if he does get the chance to play on Sunday.

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