Nostalgia is a fine thing in football.
Memories of success, last-gasp wins and favourite players are all part of what makes the game truly beautiful. Stories can be passed on, negatives forgotten and legends made.
Eden Hazard is one such legend at Chelsea, and rightly so.
The Belgian winger is one of the best to have graced Stamford Bridge, and had untold influence on the sides he was involved in, boasting a record of 202 goal involvements in 352 appearances.
Many might even suggest he would bring exactly the penetration that Thomas Tuchel's side lack going forward at the moment. And, if reports are to believed, Hazard could be available despite Carlo Ancelotti playing exit talk down.
The despondency in the former Chelsea star's face as he stood among happy teammates following Real Madrid's Spanish Super Cup triumph, was enough to wrench the heart of any Chelsea fan.
The ex-Lille youngster is not the only player available with a Chelsea connection however. Ousmane Dembele's time at Barcelona appears to be coming to a close with his contract set to expire, and the Catalan club's hierarchy happy to part ways.
Barcelona director of football Mateu Alemany said: "We've talked and talked, made various offers. We've tried to find a way but these offers have been systematically rejected by his agents... it seems obvious he does not want to continue at Barca and is not committed to Barca's future project.
"In this scenario he and his agents have been informed that he must leave immediately because we want players committed to this project and therefore we hope a transfer will take place before Jan 31."
The Frenchman has previously described Tuchel as his favourite manager, after working together at Borussia Dortmund, while Tuchel has waxed lyrical about the winger's talents.
He has said: "One of the first names that pops into my mind is Ousmane Dembele when he stepped in at Dortmund. Like that was a pretty natural talent and very, very outstanding.
"But Dembele was of the craziest natural talents because he was shooting free-kicks with the left, shooting corners with the left. Going to the other corners doing the inswing with the right. Going to penalties, shooting with left, shooting with right, dribbling, running, passing."
A move for either player would be fanciful, and the Blues should not be considering either when priorities remain elsewhere.
Injuries have plagued both players in La Liga with Hazard missing 58 matches during his time at the Bernabéu and featuring just 59 times. During his seven years at Chelsea he missed only 21 matches through injury.
Dembele has started 58 times for Barcelona out of a possible 172 games.
If the winter months have proved anything to Chelsea, it's that injuries to key figures can prove problematic during an unrelenting schedule.
It's easy to remember both players as they were at the peak but the reality has changed.
Hazard stayed fit more often for Real Madrid during 2021/22 but has often been left on the bench or had to make do with late cameos. After paying £89 million to claim the winger from Stamford Bridge, reports in Spain claim Florentino Perez had accepted a £33 million offer from Newcastle United plus £8 million in add-ons. Even for the Blues it would be a large price to pay.
At 31, the Blues would be taking an untold risk in bringing back the talismanic figure. The winger's ability likely remains high but could dwindle, and injuries often lead to more injuries.
Dembele has made eight appearances this season and has only played more than 30 league matches once in his career. Talks in Spain suggest that Dembele's agent, Moussa Sissoko, was hoping for £37 million in a signing on fee distributed between him and his client.
Big money signings such as Kai Havertz, Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner have struggled to become immediate successes following big-money moves, there's no argument the Blues should spend money on even greater gambles.
