LATEST SPORTS NEWS

The adulation which poured down after the final whistle as Eden Hazard, almost sheepishly, clapped his thanks to all sides of the arena was a recognition of one man’s brilliance. His had been a virtuoso display, played out to gasps of disbelief from stands, dug-outs and opposing ranks alike. It might have been tempting to panic prematurely and wonder who could ever come close to replacing the Belgian when, as seems inevitable, he eventually departs to Real Madrid, but sometimes it is best just to savour every last second of excellence.

The worrying can wait. If this was Hazard serving notice of his determination to leave on a high, then the next few weeks could be a joy. Take the goal midway through the first half which prised West Ham apart, slicing them through their centre from the moment he flicked the ball ahead into space, the turbos kicked in and the scuttle became a gallop. There were swerves away from a half-hearted Mark Noble challenge, with Declan Rice an observer too far off the pace to muster a challenge. Then came the zig-zagged slalom, played out at breakneck speed, through Angelo Ogbonna and Fabián Balbuena just inside the visitors’ box.

Continue reading...

from Football | The Guardian http://bit.ly/2U0H840