Eden Hazard
Left Wing / Attacking Midfielder · Chelsea · Belgium
About Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard is Belgium's most technically gifted player and one of the finest dribblers of his generation. He won two Premier League titles, two Europa Leagues, and the FA Cup at Chelsea — being named the league's best player multiple times. His €100m move to Real Madrid in 2019 was cruelly undermined by repeated ankle injuries that effectively ended his peak career.
Eden Hazard's story
La Louvière's Prodigy
Hazard was born in La Louvière and came from a football family — his father Thierry played professionally. He joined Lille (FRA)'s academy at 14 and became the finest player in Ligue 1 before Chelsea signed him in 2012. His dribbling at pace — maintaining close control while changing direction — was immediately identified as world-class.
Chelsea's Decade
Hazard's seven years at Chelsea were remarkable — 110 goals, 92 assists, two Premier League titles, two Europa Leagues, and two PFA Player of the Year awards. His final Chelsea season (2018-19) was arguably his finest: 16 goals, 15 assists, and a Europa League final where he scored twice and was named man of the match. Real Madrid then paid €100m for him.
The Real Madrid Disaster
Hazard suffered five separate ankle injuries at Real Madrid — including two requiring surgery — and never played consistently. In four years he made only 76 appearances. The ankle fractures were severe enough that doctors privately doubted his ability to return to elite level. He retired in October 2023 aged 32, citing his inability to reach his previous standard.
Did you know?
- 🦵 He suffered five separate ankle injuries at Real Madrid across four seasons — including two requiring surgery — making his €100m move one of the most injury-cursed transfers in football history.
- 🏆 His final Chelsea game was the 2019 Europa League final against Arsenal — he scored twice and was named man of the match in a 4-1 win — an extraordinary farewell that perfectly summarised his Chelsea career.
- 👨👩👧👦 Married Natacha Van Honacker in 2012; they have four sons: Yannis, Samy, Axel (also a professional footballer), and Leo. They settled in Spain before returning to Belgium.
- 🌟 José Mourinho, who managed him at Chelsea, said: "Eden Hazard is the most gifted player I have ever managed. When he has the ball, he is simply impossible to stop." Mourinho later signed him at Real Madrid.
- 📊 He won PFA Player of the Year twice (2015, 2019) — the first Belgian to win the award, recognising a level of individual quality that the English game had rarely seen from a wide player.
- 🇧🇪 He captained Belgium at the 2018 World Cup — their best-ever finish (3rd place) — and is the most technically gifted player in Belgium's football history.
- 😔 He retired at 32 in October 2023 — acknowledging that his injuries meant he could no longer perform at the level he demanded of himself. It was one of the most genuinely sad retirements in recent football.
- 🎮 EA Sports rated him 91 overall in FIFA 19 — joint with Messi and Ronaldo in terms of dribbling stats, reflecting a consensus that he was the finest dribbler in the world at that moment.
- 👨👧 His father, brothers (Thorgan, Kylian, Ethan), and his sons have all played football professionally or semi-professionally — making the Hazard family the most collectively successful footballing family in Belgian history.
Honours
- Premier League x2: Chelsea (2015, 2017)
- UEFA Europa League x2: Chelsea (2013, 2019)
- FA Cup: Chelsea (2018)
- PFA Players' Player of the Year x2: 2015 and 2019
- Premier League Player of the Season x2: 2015 and 2019
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