Eden Hazard wins Premier League Goal of the Month for April

Eden Hazard scores a lot of goals — still not enough, as some might say — and he scores a lot of great goals. It’s just part of what makes him such a joy to watch. And his effort against West Ham last month, the first of two goals he scored in that game, combined many of this greatest skills into one amazing package.

There was the quick turn, the balance shift, the dummy, the shimmy, the fake, and the finish. West Ham’s defenders might as well have just been training cones.

The goal was rightly nominated for the Premier League’s Goal of the Month for April. Today, it was rightly named the winner of that award. Congrats, Eden!

(This is only the second time Hazard wins this award. His other win came for that most special effort against Arsenal in February 2017.)

The goal was Hazard’s 18th this season in all competitions, 107th overall in his Chelsea career. He added the 19th later in the game, his 16th in the league. Combined with 15 assists, he leads the Premier League in “points” (goals+assists), once again making a mockery of the PFA’s Team of the Season, which did not include him.

Hazard’s next goal will be his 20th this season, the most he’s ever scored since joining Chelsea (he had 22 for Lille in his final season there). Let’s hope that doesn’t mean it’s his final season here, too (as desperate as that hope may be).