Eden Hazard deserves share of the blame for Chelsea's season of failure

Jose Mourinho lost the Chelsea dressing room? Yes, of course he did.

In year three of the Mourinho cycle, players tend to grow weary of the intense manager and his insatiable thirst for silverware. Even the blindest of fans could see that Chelsea’s players simply did not show enough spirit on match days, namely Eden Hazard. The manager, for his part, did lose his mind seemingly every week. He cared. The players, though, could not match their manager’s intensity, so Thursday's development had to arrive sooner or later.

"It was a decision taken to protect the interests of the club," Chelsea technical director Michael Emenalo said in explaining the firing of Mourinho on Thursday. "Whilst there is huge sentiment for the individual who has done so much for the club, the fact of the matter remains that Chelsea Football Club is in trouble.”

More than anyone else, Hazard excelled under Mourinho in year No. 2 of the manager’s second term at Chelsea. And more than anyone else, Hazard seemingly quit on Mourinho in year No. 3.

In Mourinho’s final game, a 2-1 loss at Leicester City on Monday, the 24-year-old hobbled off with a hip injury. Despite the Portuguese manager urging his star to fight through the discomfort, Hazard immediately walked off and down the tunnel. Mourinho said in his postgame interview that Hazard made the decision himself "in 10 seconds" to come off. The manager also felt “betrayed” by the players.

That only further confirmed the issues in the dressing room.

"The results are not good,” Emanalo continued. “There obviously seemed to be a palpable discord between manager and players. And we feel it was time to act. The owner is forced to make what was a very tough decision for the good of the club."

Diego Costa’s controversial bib throw did not result in Mourinho getting axed. Costa started two of the following three games after the incident and actually appeared in all three matches. In truth, the sacking just came down to Hazard and Mourinho failing to produce together, and seemingly both parties quitting on one another.

Mourinho asked more of his Belgian playmaker after a PFA Premier League Player of the Year season. Instead, Hazard looked lethargic, disinterested and failed to score a single goal in 23 appearances for the club across all competitions. The player repeatedly came up short on the pitch, and the manager took on the brunt of the blame for poor results.

Mourinho did not sign Hazard, but he certainly attempted to make him the star of Stamford Bridge. Mourinho cornered and expelled creative midfielder and fan favorite Juan Mata almost immediately after arriving at Chelsea, and that move ushered even more space and time for Hazard, along with the No. 10 shirt. As recently as July of 2015, Mourinho went on record to proclaim that Hazard belonged in the conversation alongside Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Mourinho even placed Hazard ahead of Ronaldo.

Six months later, Mourinho lost his job. And Hazard should get the bulk of the blame.

"This is essentially the same group of players who won the league and the League Cup last season,” Emanalo pointed out. “They did in style and they did it by showing commitment and by sweating tears and blood for the club when needed."

Sitting one point above the relegation zone, the players have not performed to the level required of their badge, their coach or, frankly, any Premier League team. Nine defeats in 16 matches only fall short of Aston Villa (12 losses) and Sunderland (10). No coincidence, Aston Villa is at the bottom of the table with Sunderland second from bottom, and both those teams have already sacked their managers this season.

Based on results and overall play, Chelsea deserves to be in a relegation scrap. But this isn’t all Mourinho’s fault. Hazard needs to take a long hard look in the mirror for the mess he’s helped create at Chelsea Football Club.