By Muwuzi Joseph
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has suggested he would allow Eden Hazard to leave the club, insisting he has never forced a player to stay against their will.
Hazard has endured a mixed spell at the LaLiga giants since joining from Chelsea for £89million in 2019, with poor form and several injuries marring his time there.
As a result, he has lost his spot in the starting XI and been linked with a move away, and his manager is adamant that he will be free to go should he want to.
‘Never in my career as a coach have I forced a player to stay when they want to leave,’ Ancelotti told reporters yesterday.
‘In my own personal opinion I don’t have any doubts about that.’
Despite being fit for most of this season, Hazard, 30, has made just nine appearances and scored one goal. He was also benched for El Clasico.
Both Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo have been relied on heavily by Ancelotti instead of Hazard, and the former is expected to be handed another start against Elche today.
The last two seasons have been frustrating for the Belgium international. He made just 16 top-flight appearances in his first campaign, although Madrid won LaLiga.
For the next year, Hazard played just 14 times in the league – with the club going trophyless. Under Ancelotti, he has now been pushed further out of the equation.
Further highlighting the dilemma facing Hazard, Ancelotti said that his star man must accept the fact he has slipped down the pecking order.
‘He has absolutely everything but he has to put up with the situation,’ Ancelotti told Spanish Media ‘Right now he has a coach who prefers other players.’
