Sarri Plays Down Hazard to Madrid Links

Maurizio Sarri has attempted to play down speculation linking Eden Hazard with a move to Real Madrid, insisting that he is looking forward to having fun working with the Belgian and hopes to make him a better player.

The Italian, who has replaced Antonio Conte as the Blues boss, was speaking at his official unveiling on Wednesday amid mounting speculation that Hazard could be on his way out.

The 27-year-old has been strongly linked with a switch to Real Madrid as a possible replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo, while Barcelona are also apparently interested.

And while Sarri could offer no guarantees he would definitely stay put, he was keen to talk up the prospect of working with one of the top players in Europe.

"Hazard is a high level player and I think he is one of the top two or three European players," he told reporters.

"I would like to have fun during the week with him, this would mean good results and being competitive at the end of the season. I hope I will manage to improve him, this is very difficult as he is at a high level."