The Return of the Dribbler
Eden Hazard was way below par by his own high standards as Chelsea surrendered their Premier League crown without even putting up a fight. José Mourinho’s early season departure certainly didn’t help but Hazard was a shadow of the player that had been crowned PFA Player of the Year in 2014/15.
The new Belgium skipper scored 14 times and provided 9 assists, helping to steer the Blues to the title that year, but incredibly, it took him until April to register his first Premier League goal of the 2015/16 season and he finished the campaign with a dismal 4 goals and just 3 assists to his name.
However, anyone who witnessed Belgium’s 4-0 demolition of Hungary knows one thing – Eden Hazard is back. He put in a sensational performance, the best at Euro 2016 so far by a country mile, terrorising the Magyars defence with his direct running style.
He’s now averaging an impressive 5.5 dribbles per game, 1.5 more than his nearest rival at Euro 2016, Julian Draxler. This is one trait that really increases his fantasy football value as it means he is often fouled, allowing him to rack up valuable points.
He’ll be up against the world’s most expensive player Gareth Bale in the second of the Euro 2016 quarter-finals and Oulala have compared the two players.
Bale will need to be at his best if Wales are to pull off a shock victory but he’s having a fantastic tournament as well so it will be fascinating to see if he can inspire his side yet again.
He also has a respectable number of take-ons to his credit, proving that the art of dribbling is still well and truly alive!
Who will come out on top in the battle between Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard ?