Having provided the telling contribution during yesterday’s 1-0 victory over Swansea, Eden Hazard was simply delighted to have secured three more points.
It was the Belgian’s ninth goal of the season that separated the sides after another tightly-fought Stamford Bridge contest. In his assessment of the match, Hazard was keen to stress the significance of the victory, even if the performance was not as strong as it might have been.
‘In the first half we created a lot of chances,’ the 22-year-old pointed out. ‘If we had scored one or two more goals it would have been easier for us, but the most important thing was the three points so we can continue to stay near the top of the table.
‘Swansea played very well. We tried to stay compact defensively and move forward on the counter-attack. We tried to find the style. Sometimes we play well, sometimes we play less well but in football you can play badly and still win the game. You just need one goal more, and we did that yesterday.’
From a personal perspective, the season continues to go from strength to strength for Hazard. The winger is already just four goals shy of the total he managed during the whole of the last campaign, his first in west London, and he acknowledged his pleasure at sending the supporters home happy with a belated Christmas present.
‘It was a very important win for us, but also for the fans. Boxing Day in this country is very special,’ he said.
‘I try to score or make assists every game so it was good for me, for the team and for the fans. At this moment I feel good on the pitch, I’m always trying to improve and to give my best to help the team.’