Zidane Reveals Frustration Over Latest Hazard Injury
Zinedine Zidane could not hide his frustration after Eden Hazard suffered another injury that has ruled him out of Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg against Atalanta.
Hazard returned to the Real Madrid squad after a seven-game absence in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Elche at the Alfredo di Stefano Stadium, playing the final 15 minutes but reported to training on Monday with a muscle injury.
A statement on Madrid's official website on Monday read: "After the tests carried out today on our player Eden Hazard by Real Madrid's medical team, he has been diagnosed with a muscle injury in the right psoas. His recovery will continue to be assessed."
Hazard’s latest injury will see him miss out against their Italian opponents, whom Los Blancos defeated 1-0 in the first leg thanks to Ferland Mendy’s late strike.
"He's not going to be fit. We're going to put something out shortly [on the injury]; I can't say any more," Zidane said ahead of the Atalanta game.
"Something is going on. These are things I can't explain. I want to be positive and think it's going to be something small.
"They [the fans] have to wait. We know what sort of player he is. They want to see him, of course, just like everyone else here. But now, they can't."
"There are four questions on Hazard – I can't say any more," Zidane replied when pressed about the player's problems.
"We want to help him. I don't know if it will be with me or someone else, because he has a long contract, but I want with all my strength for him to be seen as the player he is. Sooner or later, he'll arrive."
"I don't think there's a problem [with the department]. We have very competent people here who are on top of the players," he added, while refusing to blame the club’s medical department for Hazard’s injuries.
"We're going to find out what is happening, but at the moment, it's inexplicable. We've talked about pre-season, the accumulation of matches, also in the head.
"We're going to try to recover [the injured players]. Now, we have fewer injuries. Enough of them have returned."
Injuries and a positive coronavirus test has restricted Hazard to just 15 appearances in his second season in the Spanish capital.
