Eden Hazard netted a hat trick for Chelsea on Saturday. Glyn Kirk / AFP
Eden Hazard netted a hat trick for Chelsea on Saturday. Glyn Kirk / AFP
Eden Hazard netted a hat trick for Chelsea on Saturday. Glyn Kirk / AFP
Eden Hazard netted a hat trick for Chelsea on Saturday. Glyn Kirk / AFP

Eden Hazard: ‘Top of the league. I hope at the end of the season it will be the same’


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Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho may have played down his side’s Premier League title chances, but in-form forward Eden Hazard admits that he has been dreaming of winning the league.

Hazard’s hat-trick in the 3-0 win over Newcastle United on Saturday means that Mourinho’s side will travel to West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday a point clear at the head of the table with a third of the season remaining.

The run-in is about to gather pace and the Belgium winger has revealed that thoughts of lifting the championship trophy are already disturbing his sleep.

Following the weekend win, Hazard told Chelsea TV: “Top of the league. I go in my bed, I dream. I hope at the end of the season it will be the same.

“It’s a pleasure to play for this team and to work for that.”

Hazard’s personal contribution has been one of the main factors underpinning Chelsea’s progress this season and the 23-year-old has been described as the best young player in the world by Mourinho.

“Eden is a great player, he has great confidence as well, and anything he touches at the moment is going for him,” said team-mate Gary Cahill.

“He’s a young player getting better and at the moment he is producing some world-class football for us.

“In the first half (against Newcastle), when we didn’t play particularly well and the game was quite tight, you want that little bit of individual brilliance and Eden produced that for us with two goals in which he was heavily involved in the build-up and he finished them.

“He has adapted to the league very well, he is a special player, and he thoroughly deserved his hat-trick.”

While Chelsea are on an outstanding run that has yielded eight wins and two draws in their last 10 league games, they face a West Brom side who slid into the bottom three following their weekend loss at Crystal Palace.

The form book suggests a comfortable win for the league leaders, but Cahill insists that there is no chance of complacency creeping in.

“We got credit for the performance against Manchester City last week (a 1-0 win), but we didn’t want to sit back and rest on our laurels,” he said.

“It is all about momentum for us. There is no better feeling than winning football matches and at the minute we are getting some good results and we want to keep that feeling going.”

West Brom head coach Pepe Mel says that his players must quickly turn around their fortunes after slipping into the bottom three.

The 3-1 defeat at Palace left them with just one victory from 15 Premier League games and Mel with two points from a possible 12 since taking charge.

“For me it’s early, it’s like pre-season, but there are no friendly matches,” he said. “The matches are all important.

“I hope it comes together soon because we need to win three points soon. West Brom need to be in the Premier League next season.”

West Brom goalkeeper Ben Foster admits that his side cannot allow themselves to start against Chelsea like they did at the weekend, when they fell 2-0 down to Palace within the opening 27 minutes.

“We can’t let it get to the point when we are one or two goals down in a game and then finally make a push for the game. We need to go from the very first minute,” he said.

“We have to remain positive and take the second-half performance into the Chelsea game.”

Six large-scale objects on show
  • Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
  • The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
  • A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
  • Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
  • A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
  • Torrijos Palace dome
Biggest%20applause
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'Hocus%20Pocus%202'
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Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

'Munich: The Edge of War'

Director: Christian Schwochow

Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons

Rating: 3/5

UAE%20Warriors%2045%20Results
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E%0DMain%20Event%0D%3A%20Lightweight%20Title%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EAmru%20Magomedov%20def%20Jakhongir%20Jumaev%20-%20Round%201%20(submission)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-Main%20Event%0D%3A%20Bantamweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ERany%20Saadeh%20def%20Genil%20Franciso%20-%20Round%202%20(submission)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECatchweight%20150%20lbs%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EWalter%20Cogliandro%20def%20Ali%20Al%20Qaisi%20-%20Round%201%20(TKO)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBantamweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ERenat%20Khavalov%20def%20Hikaru%20Yoshino%20-%20Round%202%20(TKO)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFlyweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EVictor%20Nunes%20def%20Nawras%20Abzakh%20-%20Round%201%20(TKO)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFlyweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EYamato%20Fujita%20def%20Sanzhar%20Adilov%20-%20Round%201%20(submission)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELightweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EAbdullo%20Khodzhaev%20def%20Petru%20Buzdugen%20-%20Round%201%20(TKO)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECatchweight%20139%20lbs%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ERazhabali%20Shaydullaev%20def%20Magomed%20Al-Abdullah%20-%20Round%202%20(submission)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFlyweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ECong%20Wang%20def%20Amena%20Hadaya%20-%20Points%20(unanimous%20decision)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMiddleweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EKhabib%20Nabiev%20def%20Adis%20Taalaybek%20Uulu%20-%20Round%202%20(submission)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELight%20Heavyweight%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EBartosz%20Szewczyk%20def%20Artem%20Zemlyakov%20-%20Round%202%20(TKO)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Bayern Munich 1
Kimmich (27')

Real Madrid 2
Marcelo (43'), Asensio (56')

How to apply for a drone permit
  • Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
  • Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
  • Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
  • Submit their request
What are the regulations?
  • Fly it within visual line of sight
  • Never over populated areas
  • Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
  • Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
  • Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
  • Should have a live feed of the drone flight
  • Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201.8-litre%204-cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E190hp%20at%205%2C200rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20320Nm%20from%201%2C800-5%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeven-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%206.7L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh111%2C195%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20specs
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Company%C2%A0profile
%3Cp%3ECompany%3A%20Zywa%3Cbr%3EStarted%3A%202021%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Nuha%20Hashem%20and%20Alok%20Kumar%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20UAE%3Cbr%3EIndustry%3A%20FinTech%3Cbr%3EFunding%20size%3A%20%243m%3Cbr%3ECompany%20valuation%3A%20%2430m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier

Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman

The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August

 

Group A

Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar

Group B

UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia

 

UAE group fixtures

Sunday Feb 23, 9.30am, v Iran

Monday Feb 25, 1pm, v Kuwait

Tuesday Feb 26, 9.30am, v Saudi

 

UAE squad

Ahmed Raza, Rohan Mustafa, Alishan Sharafu, Ansh Tandon, Vriitya Aravind, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Basil Hameed, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Ayaz, Zahoor Khan, Chirag Suri, Sultan Ahmed