Chelsea midfielder Eden Hazard has the potential to win the Ballon d’Or award and it is now up to him to go and get it, according to teammate Cesc Fabregas.
Despite the Blues enduring a disappointing season so far, at least by their high standards, the Belgian international has been one of the few players in the squad that has been in splendid form; he has scored 12 times and provided nine assists in all competitions to date.
Fabregas has said that he believes that his colleague has all of the qualities that are necessary for being crowned as the best player in the world.
“He is a player who can do one on one, he can get possession of the ball, he can pass and has great ability with the ball,” the former Barcelona and Arsenal man explained to Sky Sports (via the Daily Star). “With Eden, if he wants to win the Ballon d’Or, it’s up to him. I’ve played football for a long time and played with top, top players and he has all the quality, I know what he can do.”
Decade of dominance set to end?
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have had a stranglehold over the Ballon d’Or award for over ten years now but that is likely to soon end, considering that the duo are now 30 and 33, respectively.
Although Messi will be a top contender for the award this season, it is unlikely that the same will apply to Ronaldo, considering that Real Madrid have been woeful this season, which has also coincided with the Portugal superstar’s loss of form.
Fabregas revealed that he has told Hazard what he will need to do in order to usurp the pair at the pinnacle of world football. “I have told him that it’s up to him, I like to be honest,” the Spanish international stated. “In my opinion, he has the quality.
“Without the ball, he’s very difficult to bring down and get the ball off him. When he is on top of his game he’s up there with the very best.”
Header image by Aleksandr Osipov from Ukraine (Eden Hazard / Эден Азар) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
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