Waiting on Hazard: Zidane hopes Belgian will provide Euro boost

Waiting on Hazard: Zidane hopes Belgian will provide Euro boost

Eden Hazard quiere estar al cien por cien contra el Manchester City
Eden Hazard quiere estar al cien por cien contra el Manchester City | sport

The forward's ankle has been a problem but he could recover for Manchester City game

The return of Eden Hazard is the absolute priority for Zinedine Zidane right now as Real Madrid prepare for their Champions League game against Manchester City on Aug. 7. 

Hazard's ankle injury is Zidane's principle concern heading into that second leg, with Madrid needing to overturn a 2-1 defeat in the first leg when they travel to Manchester. 

The Belgian trained on Wednesday in what was the team's second session of the week following Mariano Diaz testing positive for coronavirus. 

In the session, Zidane worked on the players' fitness after a week off following their La Liga title success. Hazard responded well, but there are still doubts about how he will hold up in a competitive match. 

SPECIAL PLAN

Hazard has tried to come back before and suffered setbacks so Zidane has a special plan to ensure he has the €100 million signing in top shape for the Champions League. 

After an operation in Dallas on March 5, Hazard returned after the lockdown but could only play five of Madrid's 11 league games as they won their first league title since 2017. 

At 29, he has called this the "worst season" of his career and there's now an added psychological fear when he steps on to the pitch of a relapse. 

Topics with the letter