Eden Hazard Backs Yannick Carrasco to Make Belgium World Cup Squad Despite Move to China

Eden Hazard has defended Yannick Carrasco's decision to leave Atletico Madrid for Chinese Super League club Dalian Yifang.

The 24-year-old has been criticised for a perceived lack of ambition in making the switch, and some have suggested that he has damaged his chances of making Belgium's FIFA World Cup squad.

However Carrasco's compatriot Eden Hazard has insisted that moving to China does not necessarily represent a step down.

"I'm not inside Yannick's head, but I know that he wanted to leave Atletico Madrid," Hazard told La Derniere Heure.

"Perhaps China was the only option to leave. By staying at Atletico until the end of the season, perhaps he wouldn't have played at all.

"In China, it's certain he'll play a lot. Frankly, it's better to have playing time in China than be on the bench in La Liga.

"It seems a bizarre choice but he has his reasons, I'm sure of that. I don't have any problem with those [Red] Devils who go to China.

"Axel has been playing there for a few months, and he's always at his best when he comes back to play with us. I think it'll be the same with Yannick.

(You may also be interested in Yannick Carrasco Reveals Why He Opted to Join Chinese Super League Club Dalian Yifang)

"And the World Cup starts in just three months. You don't lose your level in football in such a short span of time. So, I really don't have any problem with Yannick's transfer.

"We're going to the World Cup to go a long way, and the winter transfer window has not changed our plans at all."