The Belgian attacking midfielder who now plays at Chelsea, Eden Hazard, claims he wants to return to work with his former coach who now handles Manchester United, Jose Mourinho. With Mourinho from June 2013 to December 2015, Hazard considered Mourinho as an ideal coach who understood the needs of footballers.
Hazard, who was brought in by Chelsea from Lille in 2012, admitted the coach, nicknamed Special One, was an unpleasant person when he suffered defeat, but it changed to 180 degrees if the victory was in hand.
“If I am now asked who is the coach I want, then I will answer Mourinho,” Hazard said from HLN.
Hazard did experience Mourinho’s care when the Portuguese national coach coached Chelsea in 2013 to 2015. At that time Chelsea won the Premier League and League Cup titles, and Hazard became a key player in the title with 14 goals and 10 assists. However, Mourinho’s and Hazard’s collaboration had to end after the 55-year-old was dismissed due to Chelsea’s declining performance.
“The last season under Mourinho is no longer fun. We don’t win, we do some kind of routine training, training without excitement. For the benefit of all parties, the collaboration (Mourinho and Chelsea) ends, “Hazard said.
Mourinho is currently back in the spotlight after the achievement of Manchester United slumped at the start of the season. The Red Devils are seven points behind Chelsea and Manchester City.
Hazard admitted that Mourinho could attack his players if the club’s achievements began to slide down. “If the results are bad, he starts criticizing his players, you know that, but after that I can accept that, that’s part of his character,” he added.
“If you win, Mourinho is the best coach you can imagine. He can be your friend, you can do whatever you want. Want to take a day off? He gives you two days. If everything goes well, Mourinho will make things easier.” continued the 27-year-old player.
So deep is the good impression that Hazard gained with Mourinho, the 2018 World Cup silver ball owner also mentioned separating from Mourinho as a remorse in his career on the green court. Hazard also admitted that the decline in Chelsea’s performance in the 2015/2016 season which led to the dismissal of Mourinho was related to his performance that was not optimal.
“In my 12-year football career, I have had a bad year, the last six months with Mourinho, and I have contributed myself to that,” Hazard said.
“After winning the championship, we asked Mourinho to give an additional holiday. I really took a break from being fit at the start of the season, I remember that lesson that summer and I returned to training with Chelsea four weeks after the World Cup,” said Hazard who has played 95 times for Belgium.
