Lavia says Hazard's presence meant a lot after United win

Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia has said a visit from former club great Eden Hazard after the win over Manchester United meant a great deal to him.

Hazard was waiting just outside the tunnel at Stamford Bridge after the match, having watched Chelsea win on goals from Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer. Hazard was especially keen to meet Palmer, who now wears the No.10 shirt, as well as fellow Belgians Mike Penders and Lavia, both of whom had starred in the game.

Lavia, who has returned to the Belgium national team this season, said Hazard's visit was special. "He's a very important figure for me," Lavia said. "We speak quite a lot. It was good to see him out here, and I could see in his eyes he was happy for me and proud. It gives me that extra motivation."

Lavia has been in the matchday squad for every Premier League fixture so far this season. Last week he completed two 90-minute matches in the space of four days, against Liverpool and Manchester United.

The 22-year-old said he wants to maintain that level of performance and his fitness. "As long as I feel good, I will do everything possible to help the team get results," he said. "I'm still young and there are a lot of areas I can improve. We try to tick them off during the week. It's a process."

He added: "All I can say is the work we are doing with all the people at the club is going well so far. It's just about keeping it going and hopefully we can continue this way."