Eden Hazard has been the best player in the Premier League all season and on Saturday he demonstrated just how much he has grown as a player and how important he has been to Chelsea’s imminent title victory. He is now the player you look to in a crisis. He is the man who has been eking out wins when the team hasn’t been at its best. He did it last week at Queens Park Rangers, winning the ball from the goalkeeper’s kick and driving into the box to set up Cesc Fabregas, and he did it on Saturday with his finish. He’s dragging them over the line at the minute. You wondered when Jose Mourinho came in whether Hazard would be the kind of player who would work hard enough for him. And he would have taken the hint when he saw Juan Mata moved out that there would be no special favours from the manager for his creative players. Eden Hazard fires past David De Gea following a storming run from the Belgian star into the box . Hazard celebrates in front of the Stamford Bridge faithful following his 38th minute strike . The Chelsea forward's first-half strike proved crucial as the Blues eked out a 1-0 victory . He perhaps looked at that and responded. You will see in certain games against lesser teams he might have a licence not to track back — but not today, not against the best teams. Then he is required to do the requisite defensive work. And he does now. But the big change for him in the last 18 months has been in his finishing — and that was evident again on Saturday. He’s now on 17 goals for the season. He’s always been a player who could assist and create but now you look to him for goals. He is the danger man, he draws people to him and creates space for the rest of the team. He’s not in the top three players in the world at the moment but he’s creeping ever closer. What he will need to reach that level is for Chelsea to make a Champions League final and for him to be decisive. Hazard tries to guide a deflected shot into the United goal as Ander Herrera tries to snuff out the danger . He is improving every season, which is a good sign, and if he keeps doing that he has a chance of being that good. Chelsea will win the league now. I don’t think they’re at their best at the moment but managing a league campaign is not about playing well all the time. It’s about surviving the difficult periods — and Chelsea haven’t lost games when they’ve struggled in the same way that Manchester City or Manchester United did. Now they look a little tired as they get towards the finishing line and Mourinho would feel he has very strong squad of 13 and 14 but he will probably try to bring in people so he can give Nemanja Matic or Cesc Fabregas a couple of weeks rest at times to recuperate. As for United, for all their dominance in possession, they lacked enough clear-cut chances. In fact they needed something like the magic of Oscar’s back-heel and Hazard’s finish. Louis van Gaal will have been pleased that they controlled long periods of the game with their passing but they did lack that bit of punch. Wayne Rooney takes on Nemanja Matic, Cesc Fabregas and Hazard at Stamford Bridge . With Wayne Rooney not being able to play at centre forward because of the injuries, it did neuter them somewhat. I thought he did well in midfield and proved that he can drop back into that position — his passing and play was excellent. But he’s been the thrust of the team in recent times. Maybe two years ago Radamel Falcao or Robin van Persie could have provided that, but at the moment United need Rooney to give them that impetus in the really difficult games. When Sir Alex Ferguson left, you would have said it might take a couple of seasons to establish a new identity and build a new foundation. It’s been a bumpy ride and they wouldn’t have expected another change of manager, but at least, two years on, it looks as though they are now in that place. Jose Mourinho may look to give key players such as Fabregas (right) a rest in the coming weeks .
Eden Hazard has been the best player in the Premier League all season . He has eked out wins for Chelsea when they have not been at their best . Hazard finishing has steadily improved over the last 18 months . The Belgian star has scored 17 goals for the Blues this season . Wayne Rooney's midfield role hindered his influence against Chelsea .