Chelsea: Eden Hazard expresses major concern over his fitness in the long term

Eden Hazard has voiced concerns over his long term future stating that he takes over two to three days to recover after each game given the number of times he is fouled.

The PFA Player of the Year frontrunner for 2015, Hazard has been among the main reasons behind Chelsea's title winning run this season. The midfielder also scored the winner against Manchester United in the league last weekend, which opened up the gap between themselves and third placed Arsenal to 10 points, with six games left in the season.

The midfielder revealed that he has talked with manager Jose Mourinho to go for bigger shin pads to save him from any massive injuries which could scupper his career in the long run. The Chelsea manager is a huge fan of the player and quoted a £200m fee for the Belgian, being actively pursued by Real Madrid.

The midfielder evaluates his performance on the basis of the number of fouls he has been subjected to in a game, with more fouls revealing that he was able to get under the chin of defenders. However, the midfielder is worried that taking so much time to recover so early in his career can have a knock-on effect, which could greatly reduce his participation as he grows older.

"I do not think I will play up to 36 – because I started early and I have taken a lot of blows" he told Sport Foot magazine.

"I'm sore all over, like an old grandpa. Let's see where I am at 31 or 32," he added.

The midfielder stated that he does not react to provocations and any foul is followed by him getting back to his feet as soon as possible and moving on with the game. He also insisted that he does not ponder much over his injuries as he trusts his physios to fix him and get the best out of his body.

"I do not respond to ­provocations. Since I started at Lille, I always took a lot of fouls and I've learned to live with it. For two or three days, I hurt all over. But the physios are there to fix me," he concluded.