Eden Hazard: Chelsea team-mate Branislav Ivanovic comes to the defence of under-fire Belgium playmaker
Hazard was booed off by his own supporters in the 2-1 defeat by PSG
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Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic has come to the defence of his under-fire team-mate Eden Hazard, claiming that the Belgium winger is "fully committed" to the struggling west Londoners.
Hazard was roundly criticised for his actions in Chelsea's 2-1 Champions League defeat by PSG last night. After another uninspiring performance which saw him swap shirts at half-time with opponent Angel Di Maria, Hazard was booed off by some sections of the home support when he was substituted in the 77th minute.
Former Manchester United captain and current Republic of Ireland assistant manager Roy Keane described Hazard's half-time swap shirt as "shocking".
Ivanovic, however, has stuck up for his team-mate, even saying that Hazard put in "one of his best performances of the season" in the PSG defeat.
"It’s not an excuse, but people have to think about the fact he started the game injured,” Ivanovic told the Evening Standard.
“Did that show how committed he is? Yes. Of course when you lose a game the fans are not happy and they have to be like that.
“But in my opinion it was one of his best performances so far. He was very strong and quick. He wanted to score and had a couple of moments where he looked [in the form of] last season.”