It was far, far better than a cameo role.
Our jewel-in-the-crown may have spent more than an hour on the bench yesterday, after being rested by Antonio Conte, but that didn`t stop Eden Hazard from playing a defining role in the outcome of the game.
In fact Hazard had hardly been on the pitch before he drilled a low shot into the bottom corner of the net to put Chelsea 3-2 up, then the Belgian saw Nemanja Matic in space, teeing up the ball perfectly for the Serbian to score one of the best goals seen at Wembley for many a year.
After the game, Eden had a few words for the press, starting with the game, Hazard remarked,
‘It`s always good to win this kind of game – a semi against a London team – so for the fans it’s good.
‘It`s my first final in five years at Chelsea so it`s good.’
And on being told he would be starting on the bench, he further added,
‘When you play football you want to play every game, but the manager did a great choice – he put in Willian and he scored two goals.’
Let`s hope Hazard can do the business this Tuesday evening when we look to get back on track in our quest to win the Premier League.