Roy Keane says underused Chelsea star is a “different player” at 2022 FIFA World Cup | OneFootball

Roy Keane claims Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech is a ‘different player’ in the World Cup

Speaking to Sky Bet (h/t Metro), Manchester United legend Roy Keane has claimed that out-of-favour Chelsea winger Hakim Ziyech is looking like a ‘different player’ in the World Cup playing for Morocco.

Ziyech has had an excellent tournament in Qatar so far. He is one of the main reasons why Morocco are in the quarter-final of a World Cup for the first time in their history. They have taken the scalps of Belgium and Spain in the process.

The former Ajax winger, who arrived at Chelsea in 2020, has not had a great time in west London. He has remained on the fringes despite multiple changes in managers at the club. Injuries at times did not help his cause, but that is not the main reason behind the lack of minutes.

Roy Keane claims that Hakim Ziyech is a different player in the World Cup. (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)

Here’s what Keane said about the 29-year-old and his performances in the World Cup (h/t Metro):

Keane is right about certain players benefitting from a higher stake environment to perform at their best. Moreover, after not getting picked at Chelsea, the change in the scenario to represent your nation in a World Cup must be an incredibly high motivating factor.

Ziyech has been linked away from the Blues in the last few weeks, with Serie A side AC Milan interested and Premier League giants Manchester United also in the race.

Ziyech has been linked with a move away from Chelsea. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

With what we have seen from the 29-year-old in Qatar and what we witnessed from him at Ajax, it just confirms the fact that he is still a fantastic player who just hasn’t got things going his way at Chelsea.

It is a bit of a shame because the Blues are struggling to create and score goals this season. We could have done with a player like Ziyech playing for us on the wing. He is good at the creation of chances, can score goals and is a good exponent of dead-ball delivery.