The Shining Star

On those very dark nights when you take a good gaze at the sky, you will notice that when there are plenty of stars they are not all shining so bright.

But there is one that glows brighter and larger than the rest; the brighter one is more visible and more noticeable than the others. And when this distinct star is placed among equally bright stars, it is its stand-out nature that makes it easily spotted amongst the dimmer or lesser glowing and shining stars diminishes significantly.

This is not that the star has lost its shine, rather it simply got lost in the mix of its likes. This is just a thesis which is intended to guide this discourse.

Now, let`s cast our minds back a little to the Ligue 1 days of Eden Hazard. He was indeed the bright and shining star not only within his former club, but also in the entire league. He was so good he won the best player award for two consecutive seasons, notching up 22 goals and 19 assists within the period.

He shined like a million stars and fired from all cylinders, announcing himself as the next big thing in the world of football. He was subsequently rated at the same level as Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi. He was always a thorn in the flesh of opposing defenders, noted for his fearless burst of runs and awesome dribbles that sparked off every stage he performed.

It was little wonder scouts from the 'elite of the elite' clubs swarmed around to lay hold of the new beautiful jewel of football. Fast forward to his eventual capture by the 'Champions of Europe', Chelsea in a dramatic fashion, costing the club a reported £32m of the club's recoupment.

On donning the famous blue shirt right from the start, he hit the ground running and shone yet again like a million stars. This can be said to be at a time when the club was 'rebuilding' and more signings were still being expected, and so there were relatively dim stars around.

Suffice it to add here that he was the chief orchestra at Lille as there were more average players there, as he was also at CFC upon arrival. He soon became the cynosure of all eyes in the first few matches, his play racking up 6 assists and a goal, going past defenders like they were not there, dribbling and mesmerizing opponents with explosive runs and taking cracking shots from any distance or direction as well receiving foul tackles and making opponents incur penalties for fun.

All these, however, coincidentally subsided after the arrival of Oscar Dos Santos Emboaba jnr and the return of Juan Mata, as well as the capture of Moses, as each made the team thicker and more lethal.

Since then, Hazard has just been average or just another player. Is it that he lost form, perhaps he is fatigued, or maybe he is adapting to the new team play or teammates, or is it that he is just average, or just a star shining among equally bright stars?

Which ever it is, a repeat and sustenance of his early BPL form, which drew comparison with the likes of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, will be highly appreciated and so will your thoughts.

KTBFFH!

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