Wes Brown: How to solve a problem like Eden Hazard

He’s definitely the star man and he’s one of those players who is so good on the ball. He’s so quick, he’s so tricky and he can produce a goal. That is what we’ve got to watch out for at the weekend.
 
I like the idea of man-marking. I remember the manager, Sir Alex, asked me to do that against Messi and Barcelona one time, with help from the team! I think it is quite simple: the less that Hazard gets of the ball, the less of a threat he is, so if someone can get tight on him pretty early on then hopefully he passes the ball off every time or we get a tackle on him. That’s a good game plan because, even though Chelsea have started the season really well, he is definitely the main threat.

Obviously, man-marking Messi was hard. I remember thinking ‘just don’t dive in!’ But it was good and I enjoyed it. It was the Champions League semi-final when we were all focused, we all knew our jobs and you can remember that night yourself at Old Trafford, it was a great one to be involved in.
  
It was a rarity for Sir Alex to specifically ask someone to man-mark an opposition player. He wasn’t really into man-marking someone as such, but we all knew what Messi could do and it was more of a case of necessity. The less he had of the ball, the more chance we had, because he’s one of the best footballers ever to be. I wouldn’t say that Hazard is Messi, but he’s started this season really well and he’s one of the top players in the Premier League. He is a clear and obvious threat. 

Chelsea are unbeaten under Sarri and I am a little bit surprised. Having watched them you can see they are playing freely, they are enjoying it and Hazard has been that main danger. The way he gets forward and the way the team plays, it’s very exciting and they’ve started really well.
 
We need more of the focus that we saw in the second half against Newcastle. We need the passion that we showed. We just need to start with that same level against Chelsea. Confidence is massive, I've always said that, and that win should have lifted ours. If we want to start well after the international break, then Chelsea and Juventus are exactly the games that you want. These are the games you need to be up for and I am sure they will be.

Juan Mata scored last time out and it will be interesting to see if he starts. I always think when a player has been bought from a club, it’s good to put them back in against that team and I’m sure he will want to play. He’s a great player, Mata. He has the touch, he’s very technical and he can always produce something when it is needed, like he did with the free-kick against Newcastle.
 
Our attacking players will be very important at Stamford Bridge. We’ve got a lot of pace and hopefully the lads will start the game how we did in the second half against Newcastle. 

I’d like to see a lot of pace, power, nice passing, good play between in each other and, if we can start like that, we’ve got a chance of winning any game. I’m really looking forward to Saturday’s game.