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Not least, his first red card for kicking a ballboy at Swansea earned him a reputation that he wanted to shake off. Away from the pitch, he was distracted and immature and, worst of all, infuriating his manager.<\/p>\n
Mourinho dropped Hazard for a Premier League match when he forgot the time of a training session and held a grudge against the winger for leaving his passport behind for a European fixture. Suffice to say, Hazard learned the hard way that he couldn’t repeat them.<\/p>\n
Hazard was undoubtedly talented, but his skills centred around him being an individual leading the team with his natural ability. At Lille, that suited him because Lille needed him to take on that role as their chief creator and goalscorer. But at Chelsea, he was one of several big names and had to play his part in furthering the team’s cause, just like everyone else.<\/p>\n
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DON’T MISS <\/strong> Under Mourinho, that meant tracking back, running off the ball to close down the opposition and making decoy runs to confuse defenders, even if it meant not getting the ball. It took some time to ingrain his methods into Hazard, but the Portuguese eventually got the world-class star he had been looking for.<\/p>\n By the end of Chelsea’s 2014-15 title-winning season, Hazard had notched 19 goals in 52 appearances in all competitions – 14 in 34 in the Premier League. But the effort he had put into becoming an all-round winger, who was now trusted to track back and help out defensively, proved to Mourinho he could be a team player – in addition to being an incredibly-gifted one.<\/p>\n He took Hazard under his wing when he desperately needed to take his ability to the next level – and that is what Pochettino is doing now with Mudryk. Taking a leaf out of the Mourinho playbook, he has concocted a crossbar challenge game with the Ukrainian to help him enjoy his football again, and the Argentinian believes it can help improve his confidence to end his goal drought.<\/p>\n The signs would suggest it’s already working. In his last two starts, Mudryk has shown a remarkable improvement in his spacial awareness and, while he hasn’t contributed a goal or assist, he is edging ever closer to opening his account for the club. Against Brighton, he was given a standing ovation from the Chelsea fans after an impressive display as he was substituted – and Pochettino’s embrace when he walked off said everything about his attempts to encourage Mudryk.<\/p>\n Chelsea have been waiting four years to find their next Hazard after he left for Real Madrid. Christian Pulisic wasn’t it, neither was Callum Hudson-Odoi or even Timo Werner.<\/p>\n But if he can continue improving at his current rate and keep the fans in his corner, with some luck and a lot of hard work, Mudryk could be the leading man for Pochettino for years to come and a Chelsea icon with it.<\/p>\n
Chelsea star James charged by FA for using ‘abusive language’ towards official[NEWS] <\/strong>
Chelsea crisis deepens as Pochettino gives injury update after Brighton win[TEAM NEWS] <\/strong>
Chelsea face U-turn on their own transfer rule to avoid Pochettino sacking[TRANSFERS] <\/strong><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/590x\/secondary\/4984144.jpg?r=1695931256793\")
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