Hazard will be the signing of the summer

Eight days can seem like forever, especially when Eden Hazard is involved. The Belgium international finally announced his decision to join Chelsea last week, over a week after he was initially expected to reveal his choice of team next season. The £32m deal with the Blues was finalised earlier this week and he becomes the second signing for the club this summer, after Marko Marin arrived from Werder Bremen.

In Hazard, Chelsea are obtaining a player who can, to put it simply, create something out of nothing. Lightning pace, comfortable on the wing or in behind the front-man, a sharp eye for goal and the ability to thread a ball to exceptional accuracy, the young schemer is exactly the player the Blues need to re-stamp their dominance on English football.

With Didier Drogba gone, the prodigious star can help ease the burden on the remaining front-men at the club. Ending last season with 22 goals for former club Lille to help them secure Champions League football next year, Hazard can also bring a substantial amount of assists to his repertoire, culminating in 16 for the Ligue 1 side.

Blues fans will be hoping he can bring similar performances to the Premier League and whilst it may take time for him to fully adjust, there is a aura of confidence in those that have seen him up close that he can make the transition from French to English football. In short, Hazard will certainly be a difficult player for Les Dogues to replace, but with Chelsea losing the seemingly irreplaceable Drogba this summer, the youngster will go a long way to filling that gargantuan sized void that the Ivorian will leave at Stamford Bridge. 

For more Football Blogs and opinion from football fans around the world