Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has urged the club’s strikers to start scoring in order to take some of the weight off Eden Hazard’s shoulders.

Hazard has enjoyed a brilliant start to the new campaign scoring seven times already in just eight games.

However while the Belgian has been blistering, the club’s other forwards – besides Pedro, who has three goals – have struggled to find the net.

Brazilian winger Willian, has scored just twice in ten games; Alvaro Morata has just one in nine while Olivier Giroud has thus far failed to score in seven appearances.

Maurizio Sarri’s side have enjoyed an unbeaten start to the season, but Rudiger has called for his side’s other attackers to step up to the plate in the weeks to come.

“We need to learn to kill matches,” said Rudiger. “It’s not only on Eden’s shoulders. We need the other players to help him with scoring.

“He has been doing his job very well again, but the other guys must score too – Giroud, Morata, Willian have to score. As a team all of us have to provide more goals, the defenders as well.

“At the end of the day the best scorers are Hazard and Pedro, but with the quality of players we have on the pitch, it’s not too good.”

Chelsea take on Hungarian side Vidi in the Europa League on Thursday, before facing Southampton at the weekend in the Premier League.