Eden Hazard insists Chelsea are not interested in influencing the Premier League title race.
Chelsea face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday where they can spoil the Reds’ title ambitions for the second time in five years.
Cesar Azpilicueta has already conceded he is keen for a repeat of 2014, where Steven Gerrard’s slip and Chelsea’s 2-0 April win at Anfield scuppered Liverpool’s Premier League bid.
Maurizio Sarri’s men could again dent Liverpool’s fight for that elusive first top-flight title since 1990 on Sunday, but Belgium playmaker Hazard is focused only on advancing the Blues’ bid for a top-four league finish.
“We don’t care about who can win the title, we’ll go there and try to win the game,” Hazard told the BBC.
“They are a fantastic team to watch, their manager is great.
“They have some of the best players in the world. But we are Chelsea, we can beat anyone.”
Chelsea have now lost just one of their last 20 home #PL matches (W12 D7 L1) pic.twitter.com/SCxrmjllO6
— Premier League (@premierleague) April 9, 2019
Chelsea scraped past Slavia Prague 1-0 at the Sinobo Stadium in Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final first leg.
Marcos Alonso’s late header handed the Blues the halfway-point advantage in the tie, with Chelsea hosting the return leg at Stamford Bridge this Thursday night.
The Blues are desperate for a top-four league finish to secure Champions League football for next term though, leaving Hazard honing in on that above all else.
19 – Eden Hazard has scored 19 goals in all competitions in 2018-19 – his joint-best tally in a season for Chelsea (level with 2014-15). Masterclass. #CHEWHU pic.twitter.com/tCBICSoXgu
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) April 8, 2019
Hazard remains among Real Madrid’s main transfer targets for this summer, with the Spanish giants still working on agreeing a fee for the 28-year-old.
Chelsea are continuing to hold out for £100million for their talisman forward, who has refused to sign extended terms with his current Stamford Bridge deal expiring next summer.
Head coach Sarri has already admitted Chelsea would have to “respect” Hazard’s wishes should he opt for a move to Madrid that he has previously dubbed a “dream”.
Of course he meant it! ?@willianborges88 found the net on our last visit to Anfield in the @PremierLeague… pic.twitter.com/Bl7QsuZY10
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 13, 2019
Chelsea’s hierarchy are understood to be ready to resist any advances for any of their other frontline players this summer however, especially in light of their two-window FIFA transfer ban.
The Blues are waiting for the outcome of the appeal they launched in Zurich on Thursday and, even if FIFA upholds its original ban, Chelsea could take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Brazil forward Willian is again being linked to Barcelona, but the 30-year-old is highly prized by the Blues, with Stamford Bridge bosses intent on retaining his services.