Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits interest in Lille's Eden Hazard

The Frenchman admits he is keen on the Belgian youngster, while Joe Cole, who is on loan at the French club from Liverpool, has also talked up his team-mate

7 Feb 2012 11:56:00

By Sam Bisby

More On :  Arsenal FC, Lille OSC, Eden Hazard, Arsène Wenger
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Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has admitted his interest in Lille attacker Eden Hazard.

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The 21-year-old has caught the eye with his performances in Ligue 1 for the French champions, for whom he has scored 38 times in 174 appearances.

And Wenger confessed he is a keen observer of the Belgian, who has been linked with several of Europe’s top clubs recently.

He told Belgian publication DH: “I really like him [Hazard] and, for several reasons: it's his creative power, his ability to mis-align the opponent, his vision of the game and his consummate skill to address the last pass which make him a very interesting player.”

Hazard has already amassed 25 caps for the Belgian national team and has scored 1 goal for Georges Leekens' side.

Liverpool's Joe Cole, who is currently on loan with the French club, also recently praised team-mate Hazard comparing him to Barcelona's Lionel Messi.

"Hazard is different class. He's still only 21 [sic] and has definitely got another few gears to go up. He's got the same attitude as Rooney at that age. He's fearless," Cole said to talkSPORT.

"He knows how good he is, and that's a positive thing. All the top players have got that belief and a bit of presence and arrogance, and he's like that.

"He's a bit like Messi. There's only one Messi and I don't want to put pressure on the kid, but he's like him - short, squat, powerful legs, great touch, he can finish, he's got everything."

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England 1-0 Belgium, Netherlands 4-0 Northern Ireland - follow all the international action LIVE! ahead of Euro 2012
With countries across the continent gearing up for their final warm-up games ahead of Euro 2012, join us for all the action from Saturday's friendlies. Get in touch with us via Twitter with your reaction.

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20:17 BST
It's now 5-0 to Netherlands. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has just come on for Arsenal striker Robin van Persie, who scored two goals. A bit of debate on who will start between those two at the Euros, it's an interesting one.
20:14 BST
The general consensus, then, is that Danny Welbeck should be starting up front against France with Ashley Young supporting him. How about Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain? Did he do enough to earn a starting role at Euro 2012?
20:06 BST
So, that game gave a few players a chance to impress for England. Who did/didn't? Will Welbeck start against France? Or Carroll? Or Defoe?!

19:59 BST
Unfortunately for Northern Ireland, they are trailing the Netherlands 4-0 at half-time. Looks like that one's all sewn up then.
19:54 BST
We're still getting plenty of Hazard chat on Twitter. A few are now saying that he's not worth the hype, others saying he was brilliant(!?) and others (which I agree with), saying he created much of his own hype. What do you think? Get involved!
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