A Chelsea colleague of the Belgian forward, and a former Blancos striker, concedes that a top talent may already have his heart set on a transfer

Eden Hazard continues to be linked with a move to Real Madrid and Chelsea team-mate Gonzalo Higuain concedes it will be “difficult to change his mind” if he wants a new challenge in Spain.

The Belgium international forward has offered regular hints that he sees his future in La Liga and is yet to commit to a contract extension at Stamford Bridge past the summer of 2020.

He has vowed to reveal his intentions “soon”, with transfer talk continuing to be batted away for now.

Hazard distanced himself from the Real rumours after firing Chelsea to a 2-0 win over West Ham on Monday, claiming that Hammers fans were “wrong” in chants suggesting that he will soon be on his way out of west London.

Speculation continues to build, though, and former Blancos striker Higuain admits a talented colleague may already have his heart set on a switch to the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Argentine frontman told ESPN FC: “What can I tell you? Those are things that involve the club executives and the desire of the player.

“When a player has a desire, it is difficult to change his mind.”

Hazard has been in talks with Chelsea over fresh terms for some time, but Higuain says the 28-year-old is the only one who can shed some light on his plans.

The South American added on a player he hopes to be turning out alongside next season after earning his own move from Juventus in the next window: “He is one of the best [in the world].

“It is obvious that, when he is at this level, he gives you points, he gives you goals and the truth is that it is a great asset to have him with us.

“Here what matters is Eden’s decision and the decision of the board. I cannot do anything. He has not asked me [about life in Madrid] but if it’s what makes him happy, I wish him the best. I hope he can stay.”

Any move from Madrid to try and land Hazard would require them to dig deep, with Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri having claimed that €100 million (£86m/$113m) will not be enough to get a deal done.

He has told Sky Sports: “It’s too cheap.

“We have seen every price in the last few transfer windows. I think it’s very hard to change Hazard with another player.

“I’m sure the club doesn’t want to sell him.

“But, of course, we all have to respect his decision. He’s in the last year of his contract [next season]. If he wants to have another experience, we’ll respect that.”

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The Blues should thank their Belgian superstar – who is likely to depart for Spain this summer – for dragging them towards the Champions League

When Eden Hazard delivered his second assist of the afternoon in the 3-0 win against Watford on Sunday, an astonishing statistic was unveiled… the Belgian superstar had been responsible for 50 per cent of Chelsea’s goals this season.

With 16 goals and 15 assists this term, he had contributed to 31 of Chelsea’s 62 league goals. And, although Pedro assisted a third Chelsea goal for Gonzalo Higuain – following Ruben Loftus-Cheek and David Luiz’s earlier strikes – there could be no doubting just how invaluable Hazard is.

This is exactly what Chelsea will be missing if Hazard – appearing in potentially his last Premier League game at Stamford Bridge – does indeed move to Real Madrid this summer.

Without Hazard’s contribution in 2018-19, the Blues would not have qualified for next season’s Champions League.

Chelsea fans know this only too well, and after a poor first-half performance here, they booed Maurizio Sarri’s team off the pitch at half-time.

However, soon after the break, Hazard quickly showed that this would be a game of two halves. With nothing on, he beat several Watford players and forced a save from Ben Foster.

He then set off following a short corner and crossed for Ruben Loftus-Cheek to open the scoring.

Hazard was behind Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser in the Premier League assist chart ahead of kick-off but he soon became the best creator in Europe’s top five leagues as he assisted the second goal for David Luiz’s header.

If he does leave this summer, it was a beautiful way to mark his final Premier League appearance on the ground he has called home for seven years.

This probable final act comes as Real Madrid prepare a £100 million bid for a player whose contract expires in June 2020.

Hazard is keen on making the transfer and there is a sense that Los Blancos are willing to pay Chelsea a fee close to their asking price to get the deal done, ensuring that the 28-year-old gets his dream move to play under his idol, Zinedine Zidane.

The Belgium captain holds Chelsea firmly in his heart, though, and is keen to ensure that they enjoy a great end to the season – including Champions League qualification and winning the Europa League.

Unfortunately, Hazard realises that this Chelsea team can’t challenge for Premier League or Champions League honours right now – as they could when he joined them in 2012.

A top-four finish will be a decent achievement for Sarri, but for Hazard, it’s not enough – despite posting his best individual numbers in a single season in England.

“For me, the best season is when I’m first in the table,” Hazard said ahead of kick-off when asked about his goal and assist figures. “To be fair, it is not my best season anyway, because it was a bit like the team’s [season]. We started well, and I started well, then we had ups and downs.

“The same for me as well. I think we missed a bit of consistency.”

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Hazard has no interest in joining any club other than Madrid, and if the move were to fall through, he would look to stay at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea fans continued to chant for Hazard, just like they did for the departing Gary Cahill, who made a late substitute appearance and was honoured at Stamford Bridge for his wonderful service to the club.

It was a nice touch from Sarri, who held no grudges against a player who admitted – ahead of the game – to having a poor relationship with his coach.

Losing Hazard will be a much more significant blow, though, and his performance against Watford showed just what Chelsea will miss when he leaves.

The former Blues frontman believes a prolific performer who has been enduring a tough time at Inter would be a perfect addition at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea have been urged to make a move for Inter striker Mauro Icardo if they seek more firepower this summer, with Gonzalo Higuain not considered to be the answer to their attacking problems.

Former Blues frontman Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink saw Maurizio Sarri bring in one Argentine goal-getter during the January transfer window.

That gamble has not paid off as hoped, with Higuain finding the target just three times in 12 appearances.

He has expressed a desire to stay on at Stamford Bridge, but Sarri has been told to look elsewhere.

Serie A has been touted as the best hunting ground, with another prolific presence on the books at Bayern Munich considered too old at 30 years of age.

Hasselbaink told Bwin of the potential options available to the Blues: “Chelsea are in desperate need of proven firepower so I would love to see them make a move for [Robert] Lewandowski or Icardi this summer.

“Icardi would be my preference as I’m a little bit worried about Lewandowski’s age.

“I think Icardi is a more realistic target while also being more likely to adapt to the Premier League.

“Lewandowski is a superb striker but he is the wrong side of 30 and we have seen with Higuain that England is not an easy place to come at that stage of your career.”

Hasselbaink believes Higuain should be allowed to return to Juventus when his loan spell comes to an end but admits a few of those currently taking in spells outside of west London could be welcomed back into the fold.

He added, with the Blues currently contesting a two-window transfer embargo: “Chelsea have dozens of players out on loan and they may need to tap into that pool if they’re unable to make new signings for the next 12 months.

“I can see [Alvaro] Morata returning to Chelsea because I think the squad is in desperate need of a striker and [Gonzalo] Higuain hasn’t looked like the answer so far this season.

“[Kurt] Zouma might fancy his chances of coming back to Chelsea and becoming part of the squad, but I don’t think he would earn a regular starting role.

“[Tiemoue] Bakayoko will be moved on this summer because he hasn’t come remotely close to performing as he did at Monaco. That move simply hasn’t worked out for either party.

“There’s a couple of young players in the Championship, [Mason] Mount and [Jay] Dasilva, that might eye a role in the Chelsea squad next year similar to what [Callum] Hudson-Odoi has had this season.

“I’ve been impressed with both of them, but it’s a big step up from the Championship to performing for Chelsea so I do think next season might come too soon for them.”

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The Atletico Madrid striker will not be seen again in La Liga action this season after being suspended and fined over his action against Barcelona

Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa has seen his season brought to a close after being stung with an eight-match ban for insulting and grabbing referee Jesus Gil Manzano during a defeat to Barcelona.

The fiery frontman saw red just 28 minutes into the La Liga fixture at Camp Nou on April 6.

Believing that he had been fouled, the Spain international launched into a furious tirade at the match officials.

He was shown a straight red card and had to be ushered from the field by Gerard Pique after initially refusing to walk.

Manzano revealed in his match report that Costa had said to him: “I sh*t on you wh*re mother”.

The former Chelsea forward also grabbed hold of the referee’s arm during an angry confrontation.

He has paid the price for those actions, with the Spanish Football Federation having met on Wednesday to discuss what punishment to hand out.

They have determined that Costa must sit out eight La Liga fixtures.

He has been handed two four-game bans – one for insulting a match official and another for holding Manzano’s arm in an effort to prevent him from showing yellow cards to Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez.

As Atletico only have seven more matches to take in this season, Costa’s campaign has been brought to a premature conclusion.

The 30-year-old has also been fined over his actions in his most recent outing.

He has been ordered to pay €6,010 to the relevant authorities and Atletico €2,800.

The sorry episode brings the curtain down on what has been a testing season for Costa.

Across 21 appearances, he has managed just five goals, with only two of those coming in La Liga.

Questions have been asked of his future as a result, with Diego Simeone having often favoured Alvaro Morata since adding another Spain international striker to his books.

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Costa, who returned to Atletico from Chelsea in 2017, will have no further opportunities in which to prove his worth this term.

He does have a contract through to 2021 at Wanda Metropolitano, but it remains to be seen whether he will see that out.

Despite suffering a 1-0 defeat at home to the Liga giants in the Champions League, a French midfielder believes the Red Devils can reach the last four

Paul Pogba claims Manchester United know how to beat Barcelona at Camp Nou as the Red Devils eye another Champions League comeback.

United lost 1-0 against Barca at Old Trafford on Wednesday – Luke Shaw’s 12th-minute own goal settling the first-leg quarter-final clash.

Having overturned a 2-0 first-leg deficit to reach the quarters at the expense of Paris Saint-Germain last month, United face another uphill battle away to Barca next week.

However, French star Pogba – who has been linked with Real Madrid – believes in United’s chances against Barca.

“It was a good game, obviously we’re playing against Barcelona, one of the best teams in the world,” Pogba told reporters. “But we gave them some problems as well, they gave us some problems but we know where we can hurt them.

“Now it’s one leg gone, we have the other one and we’re going to give everything in this one. We’re going to do everything we can to make it happen and we believe it.

“They didn’t really have a lot of chances, maybe one when David [De Gea] made a great save. But after that they weren’t that dangerous, not a lot of chances.”

Asked if he expected to see so many cracks in Barca’s game, Pogba replied: “That’s what we saw in the videos.

“We know that they are a very, very strong team offensively. One of the best in the world of course. But all teams have flaws. We know what their flaws are so we’re going to target that next game.”

Romelu Lukaku scored twice as United stunned PSG 3-1 in the return leg of their last-16 tie in March, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side progressing on away goals.

Lukaku, who struggled against Barca midweek, knows the La Liga champions are a different proposition compared to PSG.

“With all due respect to the PSG, we were very lucky that evening in Paris,” Lukaku said. “Against Barcelona, it will be much more difficult and we know that we will have to be stronger than we were in Paris.”

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The shot-stopper has made three errors leading to goals in his last four appearances, and cost the Reds two points at Old Trafford on Sunday

If David de Gea is dropped by Manchester United, the club could lose their number one “forever” according to Graeme Souness.

De Gea spilled a simple Antonio Rudiger shot two minutes before half-time when United took on Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday to allow Marcos Alonso a close-range equaliser. 

The blunder came after mistakes against Barcelona and Manchester City also cost the Reds, and De Gea has now made three errors that have led to goals in his last four appearances.

But Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insisted after the game that he was right not to drop De Gea against Chelsea , and Souness agrees it would be a mistake to remove the Spain international from the team. 

“You leave him out, I think you lose him forever,” Souness said on Sky Sports .

“There would still be a queue for him. If Ole was to leave him out, and he brought in someone who didn’t do well, you’ve then lost the guy you’ve trusted for seven, eight years. And you’d end up having to buy someone else.

“You’ve got to stick with him. Credit is a big thing in football. The supporters love him and you saw that at half-time.”

Red Devils legend Gary Neville also believes De Gea should retain the number one spot, citing the 28-year-old’s impressive form in recent seasons for United.

“There are some players who build up enough credit during their careers, that you play them through,” Neville said.

“Let’s say Wayne Rooney had a bad time – didn’t score in 12 games for Manchester United. If he’s had five, six years at the club playing like he has, you don’t just ditch someone like that after five, six, seven games. It’s not a young player coming into the club that’s struggling. 

“He [De Gea] has been outstanding. He’s been the best player at Manchester United, the only top player at Manchester United for the last five or six years.”

The slip-up from De Gea cost his team a valuable two points that would have drawn them level with fourth-placed Chelsea, but they now remain three points adrift of the Champions League qualifications places with two games remaining. 

Our Fantasy writer looks back on the latest double gameweek and picks out the 11 best players including stars from Manchester City, Wolves, and more

Another double gameweek has come and gone and, whilst it was interesting, it was perhaps not as exciting as Fantasy owners would have hoped. The attacking players largely failed to provide the returns that people dream of in these kinds of situations

It wasn’t just the forwards that were disappointing though as no player, regardless of position, managed to cross the 20 point threshold over two matches. In fact, Ayoze Perez finished with the most points this round, and he only needed 90 minutes to manage it, not 180.

The defenders were the closest to matching expectation, especially those from Manchester City who were the only players to record two clean sheets, but none of them recorded a goal or assist to push them over the top. On the whole, this double gameweek will likely fail to stick in the memory but you can find the 11 best performers from this round below in our Goal Premier League Team of the Week.

GK: Ederson – Manchester City – 2 Games, 5 Saves, 2 Clean Sheets = 16 Points

DEF: Matt Doherty – Wolves, 2 Games, 1 Goal, 1 Goal Conceded, 1 Clean Sheet = 15 Points

Doherty has become a Fantasy hero in his first Premier League season, but things had cooled significantly for him of late of late. In fact, the Wolves defender failed to record a single attacking return in the previous eight matches, but that streak came to an end with his headed goal against Arsenal on Wednesday.

Having directly contributed towards eight goals on the season (4g, 4a), Andrew Robertson is the only defender to have been a part of more goals (9a). With that, and a fairly kind next couple of fixtures (Watford and Fulham) Doherty looks a great own until matchweek 38 when they face Liverpool who will likely need to win that match to have a shot at the title.

DEF: Kyle Walker – Manchester City – 2 Games, 2 Clean Sheets = 14 Points

DEF: Jonny – Wolves – 2 Games, 2 Assists, 1 Goal Conceded, 1 Clean Sheet = 14 Points

DEF: Aymeric Laporte – Manchester City – 2 Games, 2 Clean Sheets = 14 Points

The Manchester City defence has been dominant of late, and Laporte has been at the centre of all of it. They’ve now kept four clean sheets in the last five weeks, including massive wins against Tottenham and Manchester United. While Laporte doesn’t offer the attacking returns of others in the game, being an ever-present in the second-best defence in the league is more than enough for the Frenchman to be considered an elite Fantasy defender.

His 143 points are the most of any non-Liverpool defender and considering he costs at least £1.0m less than Virgil van Dijk and Andrew Robertson, Laporte is a value despite a £7.2m price tag. He’s just shy of a must-own but, regardless of whether it’s him or not, you should definitely own a Manchester City defender for the run-in.

DEF: Lucas Digne – Everton – 1 Game, 1 Goal, 1 Clean Sheet = 14 Points

MID: Gerard Deulofeu – Watford – 2 Games, 2 Goals = 16 Points

The second match wasn’t exactly inspiring, but Deulofeu’s brace against Huddersfield was more than enough to make him the best midfielder in the Goal game this week. This shouldn’t exactly have come as a surprise though as, of his nine goals this season, seven of them have come against Cardiff and Huddersfield.

The Spaniard has inarguably grown as a player this year, but he just hasn’t done the business against the rest of the league. With no smaller clubs left for Watford in 2018/19, it’s probably wise to avoid Deulofeu until August.

MID: Gylfi Sigurdsson – Everton – 1 Game, 1 Goal, 1 Assist = 11 Points

MID: Bernardo Silva – Man City – 2 Games, 1 Goal = 10 Points

FOR: Ayoze Perez – Newcastle – 1 Game, 3 Goals = 17 Points

You hate to reduce a team performance to just one individual but Perez’s goals over the past two weeks have basically ensured Newcastle’s safety. The forward’s form had already been improving of late as he’s netted an impressive eight times in the second half of the season, which is top-five in the league.

In Fantasy, this has seen Perez soar up the scoring charts and he has now scored more points than any other forward at his price (£7.1m) or higher. It’s always hard to fit a “budget” striker into your front line since there are only three available slots but, even if he doesn’t make your squad, he still gets the title of Goal Player of the Week.

FOR: Christian Benteke – Crystal Palace – 1 Game, 1 Goal, 1 Assist = 10 Points

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For a coach that has been far from gun-shy at the selection table this year, Nick Stiles looks to have finally found his best XV.

He has made just one change to the starting XV that beat the Rebels two weeks ago and it was a forced one – Campbell Magnay failing to overcome a concussion – his third significant head knock in the last two years.

With Izaia Perese in Georgia for the World Rugby U20s Championships, Chris Kuridrani gets the nod in Magnay’s place on the right wing.

The other changes come on the bench.

James Tuttle comes back into the 23 ahead of Moses Sorovi, Maranta replaces Perese and Jake McIntyre comes in for Hamish Stewart, who is also in Georgia.

“I really feel now that the team has settled down and we’ve got some really good combinations,” Stiles said.

“The team has played relatively well over the last month.

“We’ve beaten the Kings and Rebels, everyone would probably say that we should have beaten the Tahs as well.

“In the last four games we could have had three wins.

“Now we have four games to go and there’s a lot to play for – both for here now and for the future of the organisation.”

The math for the Reds is simple.

Despite having only won one less game than the Australian Conference-leading Brumbies, ACT have notched seven bonus points – many of them in close losses – to Queensland’s four.

That puts the Reds seven points back, meaning a win on Friday night against the Force is non-negotiable.

If they lose and the Brumbies beat the Jaguares in Argentina, their season will be over.

The inverse of those results would put the Reds in prime position to put their noses in front in the final bounds of the season.

They travel to Samoa to face a Blues team due to play the British and Irish Lions four days later, before hosting the Brumbies upon returning from the June break.

That is then followed with a near-impossible final round task – a road trip to Dunedin to face the red hot Highlanders.

Stiles doesn’t want to look too far ahead but said his players were aware this was a do-or-die clash against a Force side that has had the Reds’ measure for many years.

The round two clash between these teams was one of Queensland’s worst performances of the year and a fuming Stiles labelled the performance as “atrocious” in the aftermath.

“I showed them the last few minutes of that game yesterday afternoon before we trained.

“It was a bit of a wake up call for the guys.

“For those of you that have seen training, you would have seen the intensity and the physicality through the boys’ efforts and that’s the most important thing – that we got right this week.

“The Reds over history, have rocked up at the game (against the Force) and felt like we would just win it.

“That’s not doing justice to the Western Force – they’re a competitive side, they’re desperate, they compete for everything and you have got to be as desperate as them.”

The Reds host the Force on Friday night, kicking off at 7:45pm AEST LIVE on FOX SPORTS and via radio on RUGBY.com.au.

TEAM

IN: Chris Kuridrani, Lachlan Maranta, James Tuttle, Jake McIntyre

OUT: Campbell Magnay (concussion), Izaia Perese (U20s), Hamish Stewart (U20s), Moses Sorovi

1. Sef Fa’agase

2. Stephen Moore

3. Sam Talakai

4. Rob Simmons

5. Lukhan Tui

6. Hendrik Tui

7. George Smith

8. Scott Higginbotham

9. Nick Frisby

10. Quade Cooper

11. Eto Nabuli

12. Duncan Paia’aua

13. Samu Kerevi (C)

14. Chris Kuridrani

15. Karmichael Hunt

Reserves

16. Alex Mafi 

17. Kirwan Sanday

18. Taniela Tupou

19. Izack Rodda

20. Adam Korczyk

21. James Tuttle

22. Jake McIntyre

23. Lachlan Maranta

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The Waratahs went down to the Lions in Sydney on Friday night.

What are we talking about after that?

1. Waratahs have work to do

The Waratahs have beaten all comers in the Australian Super Rugby conference but when it comes to the big overseas hitters, there’s more to do. Their first scoreless match in Super Rugby, biggest loss to the Lions ever and their first loss to the Lions in Sydney. It was a rude wake-up call for the Waratahs, ahead of their bye and a run of four straight matches against Kiwi opposition. If they can’t improve on Friday night’s effort against the Lions, then a strong start to the year will quickly become meaningless.

2. Waratahs’ spark dimmed

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Even Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson admitted his side looked slow at times against the Lions. It’s a far cry from the relatively zippy high-tempo NSW that has been running out games far better than in recent seasons. This was not the NSW we saw tonight – one of the competition’s best attacking sides this year failed to score at all for the first time ever and they were on the back foot the whole day.

3. Back row reshuffle hurts

Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson opted to throw Ned Hanigan into six and bench Will Miller for the Lions match, and they seemed to lack mobility without Miler there. Though that was not the only thing the Waratahs were lacking and they talked about it down post-match, you couldn’t help but feel that his injection may have just been a handy one, rather than opting for taller timber.

4. Set piece found out

The Waratahs found some confidence in their set piece on Friday night, with some crucial scrum penalties, but that positivity was unravelled swiftly at lineout time, with four lineouts lost on their throw. It’s an issue that was pinpointed as a possible weakness in the preseason but they appeared to be punching above their weight. The Lions saw to it that they were put back in their division on Friday night, a tough lesson for the home team.

5. Lions not going away

They’ve made the Super Rugby final the past two seasons and the Lions started their month-long tour of Australia and New Zealand in the perfect way with their win over the Waratahs. Their first win in Sydney and the first time they have held the Waratahs scoreless. They’ll be tested in New Zealand but they’re going to be up among the top echelon of teams.

The Hurricanes have reached the Super Rugby semi-finals for a fifth straight season after holding out the hard-charging Bulls 35-28 in Wellington.

The South African visitors threatened to overhaul a 24-7 deficit in a thrilling quarter-final on Saturday but a Hurricanes side inspired by milestone men Beauden Barrett and TJ Perenara held their nerve.

It sets up a daunting semi-final against title favourites the Crusaders in Christchurch, with the Hurricanes desperate to reverse last year’s result in the same fixture.

Captain Dane Coles called on his pack to step up again, delighted with most of their work against the robust Bulls forwards.

“That African mentality, you’ve got to beat up the bully, I suppose. We tried to do that and I’m just stoked we got the result,” he said.

“The set piece was a big one. The scrum wasn’t perfect but I thought we negated their drive pretty well. The boys got stuck in.”

The Hurricanes will also need more vintage form from All Blacks halves Barrett and Perenara, who were central figures in numerous attacking raids at Westpac Stadium.

It was the 100th Super Rugby appearance shared by the pair – the most by any halves combination – while Perenara joined Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith as the most capped Hurricanes players with 126 games.

Both teams scored four tries but the Hurricanes slotted three penalty goals to register a 13th straight home win over South African opposition.

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The Bulls, making their first finals appearance in six years, crossed early through fullback Warrick Gelant while winger Cornal Hendricks bagged himself an impressive try in each half.

They truly launched themselves into contention when awarded a penalty try midway through the second spell, after Hurricanes winger Salesi Rayasi was deemed to have deliberately knocked down a pass. Rayasi was also shown a yellow card.

That was a black mark on an eventful night for the rookie, who crossed either side of halftime after entering as a substitute for the injured Wes Goosen.

Perenara and winger Ben Lam snared the early Hurricanes tries but they were forced to call on two late penalty goals from Jordie Barrett to keep the Bulls at bay.

Departing Bulls skipper Handre Pollard praised his team for their fighting spirit after a travel-heavy finish to the season.

The competition’s leading point-scorer is leaving for French outfit Montpellier after the World Cup, ending six seasons with the Pretoria-based side.

“I’ve made some great memories,” he said.

“I grew as a player and grew as a person. I’ll always be grateful for that.”

RESULT

Hurricanes 35

Tries: Rayasi 2, Perenara, Lam

Cons: B Barrett 3

Pens: B Barrett 3

Bulls 28

Tries: Hendricks 2, Gelant, Penalty

Cons: Pollard 3