Eden Hazard has returned to the fold at Real Madrid “like an airplane”, says Alvaro Arbeloa, with the Belgium international being backed to soar now that he is over another untimely injury setback.

The Blancos had been hoping for much more from a big-money signing snapped up from Chelsea in the summer of 2019.

Real Madrid might finally be seeing a return on their investment more than a year after the big-money purchase of ex-Chelsea star Eden Hazard as he scored just his second Real Madrid goal in Saturday's La Liga clash with Huesca. Real Madrid's $144 million star Eden Hazard has been slammed by the Spanish media after he was seen on camera laughing and joking with a former Chelsea teammate following his side's exit from the Champions League. Madrid was beaten 2-0 by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the second-leg of its semifinal on Wednesday, with goals from Timo Werner.

What's Gone Wrong With Hazard At Real Madrid?Get your FREE TRIAL of The Athletic at Subscribe: http://bit.ly/TifoSubs. 20-year-old winger Vinicius Junior could be given a starting role ahead of Hazard when the season resumes. Eden Hazard turned up overweight, which upset Zidane. Real Madrid are upset with.

A man expected to help fill a Cristiano Ronaldo-shaped void at Santiago Bernabeu has delivered just one goal through 15 appearances.

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Fitness issues have held Hazard back, with too much time being spent on the treatment table.

He has, however, seen a coronavirus-enforced break work in his favour, with a return to fitness made during the period in which the 2019-20 campaign was supposed to be played to a finish.

The 29-year-old is now ready to come back into contention for Zinedine Zidane, with Real set to return to action against Eibar on Sunday, and is expected to start proving his worth.

Former Blancos star Arbeloa, who is now an academy coach in the Spanish capital, has been impressed by Hazard’s attitude and application since rejoining training.

Eden Hazard Real Madrid

He told Real Madrid TV: 'I imagine that, with Marco [Asensio], there will have to be more care, giving him minutes little by little.

'You have to be more careful with him than with Eden [Hazard], who has returned like an airplane.

'He is going to win us many games.'

Real have been out of action since mid-March, which means there may be some rustiness to be shaken off when they step back into a competitive arena.

Zidane’s side will need to find form quickly, though, with a two-point gap currently separating them from Clasico rivals Barcelona at the top of the Liga table.

'I think there won't be many changes in this first XI, but then [Zidane] will make three or four changes in each game,' Arbeloa said of Madrid’s plans.

'The Zidane method will return for sure.'

Eden Hazard Real Madrid Contract

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Hazard will be among those looking to play a prominent role through 11 remaining fixtures, with Arbeloa also tipping Karim Benzema to remain a key man, with the French striker just one goal short of 20 for the season.

'He has been important throughout his time [at Real Madrid] and we are going to see it now,' said Arbeloa.

Hazard To Real Madrid Money Market

'With Zidane he has a lot of confidence. And we have recovered Hazard and Asensio, which is very important.'

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Real Madrid is looking to sell winger Eden Hazard this summer and intermediaries working on behalf of the club have reached out to Chelsea to try send the Belgian back to Stamford Bridge.

Hazard was a fan favourite at Chelsea between 2012 and 2019, but his blockbuster move to Real, which is worth up to £150m, has not gone according to plan. Injuries have prevented him from producing his best form and Los Blancos are now keen to cut their losses and get rid.

The problem for Real is, there are few sides willing to pay a sizeable transfer fee or meet Hazard’s wages, so club officials are left with very few options when it comes to offloading the 30-year-old.

Their latest tactic, according to AS, is to reach out to Chelsea to gauge their interest in bringing the winger back in the hope that the emotional link between club and player could help facilitate things.

It’s said that Chelsea isn’t exactly against the idea of bringing Hazard back to the club, but despite their love of the 30-year-old, they are no more willing to meet Real’s demands than any other side.

Real are looking to sell Hazard for around £50m, which is how much they currently owe Chelsea from their deal to sign him in the first place, but the Blues aren’t particularly keen to pay that or meet his wage demands.

Chelsea’s focus is on splashing out on a new striker, with top target Erling Haaland valued at around £150m by Borussia Dortmund, so Chelsea is understandably very reluctant to commit so much money to Hazard.

Thomas Tuchel is also not looking to add any new wingers this summer, having already struggled to manage the minutes of his current crop of players in that position.

Timo Werner, Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech are all pushing for minutes out wide, and that number could go up if any of the returning loanees can impress Tuchel in pre-season.

Should Real lower their demands, Chelsea may well consider doing business over Hazard, but there is no chance of them committing big money to the Belgian at this point in time.

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