Eden Hazard
Chelsea have been in red-hot form in the Premier League under their new manager Maurizio Sarri. With five wins out of five, the Blues currently sit atop the standings, just edging out Liverpool on goal difference. Chelsea carried their stellar run of form into the Europa League as well and came away with all three points from their matchday one fixture against PAOK.
Sarri fielded a quality line-up against a rather tame-looking opposition and did not experiment much by rotating the squad. Davide Zappacosta, Andreas Christensen and Ross Barkley were the only changes, meaning the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Ethan Ampadu and Gary Cahill once again warmed the bench.
Although Eden Hazard and Mateo Kovacic did not make the trip to Greece for the Europa League tie, Hazard must return to action this Sunday as Chelsea take on West Ham United away from home. Kovacic suffered a dead leg injury in training while Pedro picked up a shoulder injury in the Europa League and their selections will be subject to a late fitness test.
West Ham made a disastrous start to the season, losing four games on the trot before collecting their first three points of the campaign last weekend in the 3-1 victory over Everton at Goodison Park. Fantastic performances from Andriy Yarmolenko and Marko Arnautovic ensured Manuel Pellegrini received the perfect birthday present and the victory should boost their confidence ahead of the game against Chelsea.
Meanwhile, the Blues cruised to a 4-1 victory over newly-promoted Cardiff City last weekend. Although they went down by a goal in the early stages of the game, Eden Hazard’s brilliance was too much for the Bluebirds to deal with. The Belgian maestro, who earns £200,000-a-week, completed the second hat-trick of his Chelsea career to ensure the Blues continued their unbeaten run in the ongoing season.
And Hazard, once again, will hold the key to Chelsea’s success against West Ham. Hazard has been in tremendous form this season and he already has five goals and two assists to his name in the Premier League.
The new manager’s philosophy makes it necessary for the players to remain patient with the fall at their feet and progress to the final third with short, quick and incisive passes. The free-flowing style of play seems to have brought the best out of Hazard and he should be Chelsea’s key weapon in the final third.
Alvaro Morata was restored in the starting line-up for the game against PAOK but the Spaniard’s lacklustre form continued and he failed to convert some rather simple chances. To be fair, Morata has been given ample time to match the demands of the Premier League but he has been wasteful with his opportunities. While Morata has proven to be a glaring liability, Olivier Giroud has been exceptional in linking the play with Hazard in the final third. The Frenchman set up Hazard for his first two goals against Cardiff and has emerged as an effective target man for Sarri.
Although Manuel Pellegrini signed Fabian Balbuena and Issa Diop in the summer, West Ham have been vulnerable at the back and have already conceded 11 goals. Given that the Hammers do not have the best defensive record in the Premier League, Hazard must combine with Giroud to wreak havoc through the backline.
Chelsea will be the outright favourites when they take on the Hammers on Sunday and few would bet against them continuing their unbeaten run.