Soccer Football - Premier League - Chelsea v AFC Bournemouth - Stamford Bridge, London, Britain - September 1, 2018  Chelsea's Eden Hazard celebrates scoring their second goal          REUTERS/Eddie Keogh  EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.  Please contact your account representative for further details.
Eden Hazard has been instrumental to Chelsea's perfect start to the Premier League season. Reuters

Eden Hazard: Jorginho and Kovacic have made a 'big difference' at Chelsea



Eden Hazard has said the arrivals of Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic have helped transform Chelsea's style and that he is enjoying playing under new manager Maurizio Sarri.

Hazard, 27, has been in fine form so far this season, contributing two goals and two assists to help Chelsea to a perfect start with four successive wins.

The Belgian forward's bright start comes after a summer where he led his national team to third place at the World Cup in Russia, before suggesting he could leave the Premier League club, with Real Madrid strongly linked.

___________

Read more:

Premier League roundup: Hazard and Pedro keep Chelsea perfect under Sarri

Alvaro Morata: Maurizio Sarri's style 'better for me' says Chelsea striker

___________

Chelsea refused to sell and Hazard, now in his seventh season at Stamford Bridge, is enjoying Sarri's style of play after the more conservative tactics of former managers.

"I like to have the ball. Not in my own half, but in the last 30 metres," Hazard told Chelsea TV. "I like this type of game. It's completely different than Antonio Conte or [Jose] Mourinho before. We have more ball so for me it's not bad."

Hazard's contract expires in 2020 and the offer of an extension has not been taken up so far by the Belgian.

He was a substitute in Chelsea's first two matches of the season, but was instrumental in the win over Arsenal and then started and scored against Newcastle United and Bournemouth.

Hazard had expressed frustration at his slow introduction to Sarri's team after the Arsenal match.

Asked how he is feeling now, Hazard said: "Good. You can see on the pitch. Let's see the future."

The arrivals of Jorginho, who followed Sarri from Napoli, and Kovacic, on loan from Real Madrid, have given Chelsea a different dimension in midfield, and Hazard credits the midfield pair with changing the way Chelsea play.

"The big difference is we bring two players - Jorginho and Kovacic - and they are completely different," he said. "We just try to keep the ball more often and then when we have a chance to score, we need to score.

"But when we have more ball we can be more dangerous. We're playing good football, so we enjoy. I want to keep this momentum."

SPECS

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE

Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin

Director: Shawn Levy

Rating: 3/5

BRIEF SCORES:

Toss: Nepal, chose to field

UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23

Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17

Result: UAE won by 21 runs

Series: UAE lead 1-0

Small Things Like These

Director: Tim Mielants
Cast: Cillian Murphy, Emily Watson, Eileen Walsh
Rating: 4/5

COMPANY PROFILE

Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others

Herc's Adventures

Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5


Abtal

Keep up with all the Middle East and North Africa athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympics

      By signing up, I agree to The National's privacy policy
      Abtal