Real Madrid forward Eden Hazard has revealed how much he needs to get back his fitness level after two months of no team training and competitive football. He said he is set to join Real Madrid training camp as the club begins training in small groups this week.
Unlike in the English Premier League that allows training in groups of 5, Spanish La Liga permitted training in groups of 10 and the players are expected to follow stringent social distancing guidelines.
Since the Belgium national team captain left Premier League side, Chelsea, to join Real Madrid in July 2019 for a transfer fee worth about £130 million, the 29-year-old football star has been having a series of fitness issues.
Before the coronavirus pandemic halted football, Hazard was already out with an injury. He sustained an ankle injury in February 2020. Due to the injury, he had to travel to the United States of America in March for surgery.
Hazard returned to Spain after the surgery and went for his coronavirus test early in May. The test returned negative thereby paving the way for him to return to training with the rest of his teammates this week.
“Very good to be back on the pitch to work with the boys. We now just have to wait for the games but I’m very happy”, Hazard said via a video on Real Madrid’s Twitter account.
“After two months out, I need more fitness and more [training] with the ball. So, I just want to be ready for the next game.”
“Now [the training sessions] are better. The first week was a bit strange but now we can be back in the group and with goalkeepers as well, so it’s more like we want. So now we want to be all together and try to work as a group.”
👊🇧🇪💬 @hazardeden10 can't wait to be back in action!#HalaMadrid | #RMCity pic.twitter.com/ZLSk37aJFv
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) May 18, 2020
For the player of his status and worth, Hazard has only managed to play for Real Madrid 10 times and scored only a goal in all competitions this season. He is expected to redeem himself and impress Madrid’s coach Zinedine Zidane in training in order to get a nod for the remaining fixtures in the season if La Liga returns to action in June as it is being projected.
Zidane will be banking on the boots of Hazard in the remaining 11 matches to overtake Barcelona that is topping Madrid on the La Liga table with just two points difference.
