Real Madrid left winger Eden Hazard will miss a second straight game.
It has been a difficult first season at Real Madrid for superstar forward Eden Hazard. After needing some time to integrate into the team, Hazard started to show his world-class qualities in the Fall, but then suffered a serious ankle injury vs. PSG.
He suffered another ankle injury in the spring upon his return, and just when it looked like he would be able to kick it into high gear in the summer, Hazard enters July with more ankle troubles.
Hazard was fouled frequently and hard by Espanyol, as other La Liga teams continue to target Real’s star dribbler. Zinedine Zidane held Hazard out of the following match against Getafe as a precaution, and Getafe are notorious for their rough fouls. It took them a mere 15 seconds to get into the book for taking out Isco, after all.
The expectation was that Hazard would return for the match against Athletic Club at the difficult San Mames on Sunday, but that won’t be the case at all.
Carlos Forjanes of AS reports that Eden Hazard won’t travel to Bilbao for Sunday’s early kickoff, as Zidane doesn’t want to risk any significant injury to Hazard’s ankle. He’s already been injured twice this season, and he’s also received two knocks to the ankle – one to start the return against Eibar and then one last week at Espanyol.
Joining Hazard on the sidelines will be center back Raphael Varane, who suffered a blow to the head early in the win over Getafe.
With Hazard out, Real Madrid will call upon Vinicius Junior, who is in fine form, to be the star attacker next to Karim Benzema against the formidable Athletic Club. Hopefully, Hazard can return to full strength soon enough and help Real close out La Liga as champions.