Hazard faces his most decisive now or never moment

The image of Eden Hazard sat on the Real Madrid bench is no longer an unusual one, given that he's spent 930 of the last 960 minutes on the bench.

That last time he started a game for Los Blancos was September 28, against Sheriff, and since then he has only played one hour across five appearances, the longest being 21 minutes against Osasuna.

Having arrived to be one of the stars of LaLiga Santander, he hasn't played since the 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano on November 6. Five games later, two missed due to illness, he looks distant from Ancelotti's plans after the coach made clear that he was not at his best.

However, COVID-19 has hit the Real Madrid squad and Rodrygo Goes, Marco Asensio and Gareth Bale have all been hit down. That gives Hazard a chance to accompany Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior.

When Rodrygo has been ruled out earlier this season, it has left a hole on the right of attack and that has often been given to Lucas Vazquez.

That puts him in his preferred position and allows Ancelotti to alternate into a 4-4-2 shape with Fede Valverde or Eduardo Camavinga. The worst case scenario would be to put a youngster or even Isco ahead of him in the pecking order.

The issue is that Hazard can't play in his preferred position on the left flank, as Vincius has made that his own. Vinicius is almost undroppable, which means that Hazard has to play out of position as he did against Sheriff at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.

The Belgian has only played on the left in attack against Alaves and Levante this season.

With his future up in the air

If Hazard doesn't make it into Ancelotti's plans, it will raise question marks over his future in the January transfer window. Lille, where Hazard rose to fame, have opened their doors as a temporary home for him until the end of the season.

With Vinicius and possibly Kylian Mbappe in the future, his chances at Real Madrid are limited. COVID-19 and a tricky schedule mean that Ancelotti will have to make a decision on his team selection, and the one regarding Hazard could be the most fascinating of all.

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