This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Lucas Vazquez insists that Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure has not adversely affected Real Madrid, per Televes via Marca.
What did he say?
Not much needs to be said about Ronaldo and his huge influence on Los Blancos and their squad.
The Portuguese superstar, now at Juventus, is largely considered as one of the best footballers on the planet and his time at Real was nothing short of historic.
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Ronaldo played a total of 438 games for the club and managed to tally an unbelievable 450 goals and 131 assists in the process. Not to mention his stacked trophy cabinet that seems to be growing with each passing year; at Real, he won two La Liga titles, two Copa del Reys and four Champions League trophies.
Saying that Real miss such a presence would not really be a stretch but Vazquez says Los Blancos are happy with their squad, and besides, now they have a new No.7 in the team to lead them to glory.
Here’s what he said in full:
“What changed is that we now have another No.7. Cristiano was very important to us, but we’re very happy with the squad we have now. We want to fight to win everything.”
A new no.7
Even though it was never directly stated that Eden Hazard would, in fact, be the one to fill Ronaldo’s shoes in his absence, his price tag – he cost a fee in excess of £150m – suggests that he is very much expected to do just that.
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So far, the former Chelsea ace hasn’t really been at his very best, to say the least.
With only one goal and one assist to his name so far across all competitions, Hazard will have to start performing at his peak in order to be the hero Real need him to be.
Of course, Vazquez ‘s words do come as backing for his new teammate but with these indirect comparisons with the Portuguese star and the number Hazard carries on his back, the Belgian might have to adopt the role of Ronaldo’s successor sooner rather than later.
Let’s see if he lives up to the expectation.
