Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud believes team-mate Eden Hazard should win the Premier League Player of the Year award this season. Hazard is one of the leading candidates for the honour alongside Liverpool’s Virgil Van Dijk and Manchester City star Raheem Sterling. Giroud and Hazard will come up against Van Dijk on Sunday as Liverpool host the Blues at Anfield.
The Dutchman is thought to be leading the race for the award but Giroud has claimed the Belgian deserves the gong. When asked to pick his player of the season, he replied: “I would say Eden Hazard, but I think I cannot say who I voted for.” The 32-year-old is not allowed to vote for a team-mate in the PFA Awards but he will be hoping to help Chelsea record a win this weekend as they try to move closer to a top four finish.
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While likely to start on the bench, the former Arsenal man says he is hoping to come up against Van Dijk and is confident he can get the better of the former Southampton ace. “I’ve played against him personally a few times and it has always been a tough position because he is very good and very strong, but I’ve scored a few goals playing against his teams,” said Giroud. “I lost against him when we played the Netherlands recently, but I won last year and scored at Stamford Bridge, and scored the winner at the Stade de France against the Netherlands a few months ago. “We don’t have to be scared and no matter who plays we will be 100 per cent focused on winning the game.”
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