Advertisement First, Maurizio Sarri spilt a bottle of water across the table in his press conference and then he poured out his heart to Eden Hazard. It was quite the declaration of affection but that's because it really was quite the performance. Three chances, three goals, three points and a job extremely well done from a little genius who has taken Chelsea on a merry dance to the top of the Premier League. The question of whether this team can stay there is premature, particularly in the mind of Sarri, who maintains that Manchester City and Liverpool are the only teams equipped for a lengthy assault, despite Chelsea's perfect start. But on the question of where Hazard ranks as an individual talent, the Italian was far more bullish. Eden Hazard (pictured) scored a sensational hat-trick as Chelsea came from behind to thrash Cardiff 4-1 at Stamford Bridge Hazard, who struck twice in quick succession before half-time, slotted home a penalty to complete his hat-trick on Saturday Hazard (pictured) rolled a penalty past Neil Etheridge in the Cardiff goal after Sol Bamba had fouled Willian in the area Hazard slides in celebration in front of the home fans after earlier netting an equaliser in the Premier League showdown The Belgium international took advantage of space between the lines to fire an effort into the far corner and level the scores Hazard then got on the end of Olivier Giroud's pass to place a deflected effort past Etheridge and give Chelsea the lead Hazard wheels away towards a jubilant Pedro as Cardiff goalkeeper Etheridge bemoans the visitors' misfortune on Saturday Hazard, he said, is capable of 40 goals this season. More than that, Sarri rates him as the best player in Europe. Some claim, that, but hat-tricks make a good foundation for any argument, and plainly Hazard is surfing a wave at the moment, having scored five in the campaign to go with two assists. If you factor in the two fixtures he just played for Belgium, that goes to seven goals in seven. It is looking a lot like his best form and when Hazard reaches those levels, he is, as Neil Warnock admitted yesterday, 'unplayable'. Sarri was not only on the same page, but evidently willing to write an entire love letter. 'I thought Hazard was one of the best players in Europe, but now I am changing my mind that he is the best,' Sarri said. 'I think he can score 30 or 35 goals this season.' Within a couple of minutes, that estimate had grown. 'Eden only arrived back two days ago (from international duty). Yesterday I told him for me he can score 40 goals.' The beauty or the frustration of Hazard, depending on your point of view, is that he can improve. Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte tended to believe it could come via a greater contribution to the pressing operations of their sides, but it was interesting to hear Sarri make the argument yesterday for him to stay further forward, wasting less time with dribbles inside his own half when he could save his strength for more meaningful areas of the pitch. 'I think he can spend less energy than now,' he said. 'I want him to play more in the last 25 metres.' Certainly, those forward areas are where Chelsea excel. Their attacking quality has never been better illustrated than the sight of a marvellous player in Willian being stuck on the bench because of the better form of Pedro. When the latter was subbed off following a good performance in favour of the former, Willian proceeded to win a penalty and then scored a late beauty from the edge of the area to make it 4-1. Not bad for a cameo of barely 20 minutes; not bad for a show of attacking depth. PLAYER RATINGS, LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE Chelsea (4-3-3): Arrizabalaga 6; Azpilicueta 6, Luiz 6, Rudiger 6, Alonso 6; Kante 7, Jorginho 6, Kovacic 6.5 (Barkley 50, 6.5); Pedro 7 (Willian 68, 7.5), Giroud 7.5, Hazard 8.5 (Zappacosta 84). Subs not used: Drinkwater, Caballero, Zappacosta, Christensen, Morata. Manager: Maurizio Sarri 7.5 Goalscorers: Hazard 37, 44, 80 (pen), Willian 83 Cardiff (4-4-2): Etheridge 7; Manga 6.5, Morrison 7, Bamba 7, Bennett 6; Camarasa 6, Ralls 6.5, Arter 6 (Richards 46, 6), Hoilett 7; Reid 6.5 (Paterson 71, 6), Ward 6 (Madine 77). Subs not used: Peltier, Zohore, Cunningham, Brian Murphy. Manager: Neil Warnock 7 Goalscorers: Bamba 16 Referee: Jonathan Moss 7 Olivier Giroud turned provider for Chelsea's second as Eden Hazard scooped in. CLICK HERE for more from Sportsmail's Match Zone. Season at a glance Live tables Fixtures Scores Premier League Premier League Championship League One League Two Scottish Premiership Scottish Div 1 Scottish Div 2 Scottish Div 3 Ligue 1 Serie A La Liga Bundesliga Advertisement Substitute Willian (pictured) won the penalty for the third and then completed the scoring with a sublime fourth goal Earlier Sol Bamba volleyed home a free-kick in the 16th minute to give visitors Cardiff a surprise lead over unbeaten Chelsea Defender Bamba beat a host of Chelsea defenders including Jorginho and Marcos Alonso to the ball before netting The goal was the highlight of an otherwise forgettable game for Bamba, who later gave away the penalty for Hazard's third But among the reasons why Sarri is reluctant to talk up Chelsea's title hopes is their defence, which was shown up again here, when Cardiff took the lead. Given the Welsh club are not known for their scoring prowess, it was alarming for Sarri to see his side cough up a free header to Sol Bamba after six minutes and then fall behind on 16 minutes to a set-piece. Joe Ralls had floated a reasonably unthreatening free-kick to the edge of Chelsea's area, but Marcos Alonso lost the aerial duel to Sean Morrison and then Jorginho was beaten by Bamba to the loose ball. Two lost battles in the kind of passage that enrages managers. As Sarri put it: 'I think in this moment we are very dangerous in the offensive phase but we are not so solid as I want in the defensive phase.' True on both points, but no opponent has yet been able to meaningfully capitalise on that imbalance. Indeed, so far only Arsenal of the traditional big clubs have been faced, so it will be intriguing to see how Chelsea fare against Liverpool at the end of the month. In this one, they did what they were largely allowed to do by the opposition, but they will be heartened greatly by the contribution of Olivier Giroud, whose link-up play was key to Hazard's first two goals for 1-1 and 2-1. Giroud is increasingly looking like a better option than Alvaro Morata, particularly in games against deep-lying defences. The third goal, also scored by Hazard, came from the penalty spot after Bamba fouled Willian and the fourth came when Willian hit a curler into the top corner. With those strikes, Chelsea have five wins from five, but Sarri is not yet willing to see his team as genuine contenders. 'At the moment, I repeat, in my opinion Liverpool and Manchester City are better than us,' he said. Maybe so. But with Hazard in this form it is getting easier to disagree. Giroud was a towering presence throughout for Chelsea, who have now won all five of their Premier League games Cardiff manager Neil Warnock (pictured) watches on during his side's 4-1 thrashing against Chelsea on Saturday afternoon<doc-sep>The Belgian was at his awesome best during a Premier League clash with Cardiff and now sits inside the top 10 of all-time goalscorers for the Blues Eden Hazard’s hat-trick for Chelsea against Cardiff has seen him join an exclusive club alongside Blues legends Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. The Belgian was at his awesome best during a Premier League clash with Cardiff on Saturday. Maurizio Sarri’s side fell behind in their latest outing at Stamford Bridge, but hit back in some style and Hazard led that charge with a talismanic display. He hauled Chelsea level in the 37th minute, before firing them in front shortly before half-time. A treble was completed from the spot 10 minutes from time, with Willian adding a fourth to wrap up a 4-1 win. Hazard was the undoubted star of the show, with a second hat-trick for the Blues secured. His first arrived way back in February 2014 during a meeting with Newcastle, but he has now etched his name into Premier League folklore in west London. 4 - Eden Hazard is the fourth player to score more than one Premier League hat-trick for Chelsea (also Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink). Iconic. #CHECAR pic.twitter.com/Ad743K4o4F — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 15, 2018 Hazard’s stunning showing against Cardiff means that he now has five goals in as many appearances this season. His overall tally for the Blues has been taken to 94, with that return enough to lift him into Chelsea’s top 10 of all-time goalscorers. He has reached that mark in 305 outings, with the 27-year-old into his seventh season. Article continues below Hazard should have his sights set on reaching a century of goals for Chelsea, with there plenty more opportunities set to come his way. That would be some achievement for the two-time title winner, but he is likely to end his career some way short of Lampard’s haul for Chelsea. The iconic former midfielder netted 211 times for the Blues, with Bobby Tambling the only other man to have passed 200.<doc-sep>Eden Hazard scored a hat-trick in Chelsea’s 4-1 win over Cardiff City (Picture: Getty) Eden Hazard stole the show as Chelsea romped to a 4-1 win over Cardiff on Saturday. Maurizio Sarri’s side recovered from the early blow of falling behind to Neil Warnock’s newly promoted side to maintain their impressive 100% start to the new season. Sol Bamba prodded the visitors in front to threaten a surprise result, but Hazard turned the game on its head with two superb goals in a devastating seven-minute spell before half time. Hazard drew his side level in the 37th minute, arrowing a low right-footed shot across Neil Etheridge after he had been set free by Olivier Giroud. Eden Hazard comlpeted his hat-trick from the penalty spot (Picture: Getty) The former Arsenal striker, preferred from the start to Alvaro Morata, turned provider again a minute before the break, allowing Hazard to cap a fine move with his second of the afternoon. And the Belgium international completed his hat-trick, his first in the Premier League since November 2014, from the penalty spot with 10 minutes remaining. Hazard was then withdrawn to a standing ovation and as he left the pitch, assistant coach Gianfranco Zola was seen bowing in appreciation of the 27-year-old’s masterful display.<doc-sep>
By the time Willian bent a magnificent shot high to Neil Etheridge’s left, it had started to feel deceptively straightforward for Chelsea. At first glance, they had done another fine job of undermining Maurizio Sarri’s pleas for patience. The irrepressible Eden Hazard had the match ball under his arm, the sun was shining on Stamford Bridge and Chelsea were on their way to the Premier League’s summit after maintaining their impeccable start to the season. With Liverpool pushed into second place on goal difference, all was sweetness and light in west London. Or so it seemed. For while the final score made it look like a rout, the reality was more troubling for Sarri. He could not be entirely pleased after watching Chelsea strain to overcome a tough challenge from Cardiff City, who dared to dream after Sol Bamba’s early goal, and it was unsurprising to hear him maintain that his team are not title contenders. “I cannot change my mind because of one match,” Chelsea’s manager said. “My target is to be the best team in England, but not in one month. Maybe one season. Maybe a little more. But at the moment, in my opinion, Liverpool and Manchester City are better than us.” Sarri is striving for perfection and it brought him limited satisfaction to hear that he has emulated Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola and Craig Shakespeare by becoming the fourth manager to win his first five Premier League games. He was more interested in the poor defending that led to Bamba’s opener in the 16th minute, especially after warning his players about Cardiff’s threat from set pieces, and it summed up his mood that he responded to Hazard’s hat-trick by pointing out that Chelsea’s main man still needs to spend more time near the opposition’s goal. “I think Hazard can improve more,” Sarri said. “When he went to the ball in our half and touched the ball five or six times, in his actions he spent a lot of energy. I think Hazard can score 30 or 35 goals.” Not that Sarri was minded to focus too much on the negatives when it came to analysing Hazard’s performance. Chelsea had toiled before the forward’s electrifying seven-minute burst at the end of the first half and it had threatened to become an awkward afternoon after Cardiff’s fearless start. Neil Warnock’s side adopted a direct approach, surprising their illustrious hosts with the intensity of their high press, and the visitors sent the big men forward from the back when David Luiz needlessly steamed into Danny Ward near the halfway line. Joe Ralls pumped a deep free-kick towards the far post, Marcos Alonso failed to prevent Sean Morrison from heading back across goal and Bamba capitalised on slack marking from Jorginho by volleying past Kepa Arrizabalaga from close range. The hosts sought an instant response and Etheridge, a former Chelsea youth player, denied Mateo Kovacic with two excellent stops. Yet while Cardiff defended with impressive discipline for long spells, they could not contain Hazard. Players of the Belgian’s stature tend to pick the lock eventually and he located Cardiff’s weak point by drifting inside to combine with Olivier Giroud in the 37th minute. Joe Bennett’s challenge was weak, infuriating Warnock, and Hazard punished the left-back by beating Etheridge from 20 yards. Chelsea’s relief was immense and Giroud was involved again in the 44th minute, steering Pedro’s cross to Hazard, who smuggled the ball underneath Etheridge. “He’s a good player, isn’t he? Warnock sighed. “He’s unplayable at times.” To their credit, Cardiff refused to stop hunting for their first victory since winning promotion from the Championship last season. Bobby Reid went close in the 67th minute and David Luiz was fortunate not to concede a penalty after colliding with Callum Paterson. Yet Sarri had the luxury of bringing Willian off the bench and the Brazilian had a telling impact, surging into the area in the 80th minute and winning a penalty after tumbling over Bamba’s desperate lunge. Jorginho generously gave the ball to Hazard, who sent Etheridge the wrong way from the spot, and there was still time for Willian to rub salt into Cardiff’s wounds.