Chelsea forward Eden Hazard has given a speech that looks like his farewell to the Blues fans as he opened up on his proposed move to Real Madrid and also on the Europa League final against London rival Arsenal on Wednessday in Baku.
For the Hazard family, it has already been a summer of change. Eden’s
two younger brothers have sealed transfers, as Kylian, 23, left Chelsea
for Cercle Brugge and Thorgan, 26, joined Borussia Dortmund from
Borussia Monchengladbach. So, Eden, if two Hazards are already on the
move, can we expect a sibling hat-trick? A grin emerges. ‘There’s only
one who’s missing. Me! We will see.”
On Wednesday evening in Baku against Arsenal, Hazard will likely play
for the final time in a Chelsea shirt. Chelsea will miss him and, in
truth, we all will. Here is a player who has been in the PFA Team of the
Year four times and twice led his side to the Premier League title.
When the mood takes Hazard, he is utterly devastating.
The shimmies, the low centre of gravity, the Velcro close control,
the zig-zag slaloms and the clinical finishes have become staples of the
Premier League. Quite simply, the best of Hazard is the best of any
player in Europe. Little wonder, therefore, that Real Madrid have
prioritised his signature and, now 28, Hazard feels the move is
essential.
Chelsea will strike a hard bargain but, ultimately, expect their most
gifted player to depart. He is not prepared to sign fresh terms at
Stamford Bridge and the club cannot turn down figures approaching
£100million for a player who would leave for nothing in 12 months’ time.
In such circumstances, many players would shun questions. To his
credit, Hazard takes his job seriously but does not take himself too
seriously. In a curious quirk, Dortmund have signed Hazard’s brother
Thorgan as a replacement for Chelsea’s new addition, Christian Pulisic.
Is it fair, therefore, to suggest that Pulisic is the man replacing
Hazard at Chelsea?
“That’s possible. We will see. It’s in the hands of the clubs. But
there’s a lovely match to play. It’s not in my head right now: I stay, I
go. here is, however, a warning. Should Chelsea compel Hazard to stay
and see out his contract, will he show patience? I don’t know. That’s a
difficult one to answer. A year is long, no?” said Hazard.
In Baku, Hazard is concentrating on his Chelsea legacy. His last kick
at Stamford Bridge may turn out to be the winning penalty in the Europa
League semi-final victory over Eintracht Frankfurt and his final game
may end in silverware. The perfect farewell? “Yes. I just want to win
the trophy. It does not matter if I score or not. Of course I can put
aside (the speculation). How long do you know me now? You know how I am.
I stay in that mode: thinking about football. After the final we see
what happens,” he says.
As Hazard weaves away from the future, nostalgia takes him down
memory lane. “When I came here I was a baby,’ he says. ‘Now I am a big
man. As a person I didn’t change. As a player, I score more goals and I
have more experience. But I try to be the same as when I start.”
It is seven years since Hazard signed for Chelsea in a £32m transfer
from Lille. He was then just 21 but he recalls clearly the stomping of
Premier League feet as the top clubs vied for his talents. Wednesday’s
opponents Arsenal made a move and Arsene Wenger even hosted Hazard’s
agent at his family home. “Yes, they were talking together,” Hazard
says.
“But not like with Chelsea. I had a chance to sign for Manchester
United, Manchester City, Tottenham, but I think I made the right
decision. I spoke with the owner, with (then Chelsea boss) Roberto Di
Matteo. I had Didier Drogba on the phone and Joe Cole (Hazard’s
team-mate at Lille) told me it was the best club. I was a bit scared as
when I came, Didier left and when you have Didier in the team, for sure
you win a trophy. But at the end I played with top players. And if you
look at my seven years at Chelsea we did something amazing together. We
won trophies.”
Hazard has played under six Chelsea managers, from Di Matteo to
Maurizio Sarri. His most successful, but also his most fractious,
periods came under Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho. When Mourinho left
amid dreadful form, Hazard sent him an apologetic message.
“The way I was playing for me was the best. I was more consistent. I
look at the statistics as you, the media, ask me all the time. When we
watch the TV it says: ‘Eden Hazard scored this…’ but I don’t really
care. I just want to enjoy myself on the pitch,” he says.
“The best example is with Belgium. I played my best game against
Brazil at the World Cup (last year) and I didn’t score or assist. That
is what I like to do. I don’t think about scoring goals or assists. I
just want to do my best.”
For Hazard and Chelsea, this has been a peculiar season. He notes it
has been his best season with the Blues for goals and assists, with 19
and 16 respectively. But he did not score in his final nine appearances
and Chelsea’s campaign dramatically derailed at certain moments. “For me
a good season is not whether I scored 40 goals. I want to win something
at the end of the season. I don’t think it is my best season to be
fair.”
Asked to identify why Chelsea finished 26 points behind champions
Manchester City, Hazard’s analysis is enlightening. He suggests
Chelsea’s squad lacks the depth of their rivals, which does not bode
well with a potential summer transfer ban.
He says: “I don’t think there is only one problem. When you look at
the starting 11 of City they can play with 22 players. When you look at
Chelsea I think we can’t play with 22 players. It has been a 50-50
season. Sometimes happy, sometimes not. We finished in the top three,
Carabao Cup final and now Europa League. If we win it, the season can be
good. Not perfect, because you want to compete for the league and FA
Cup.
“Liverpool and City did not change the manager in the summer, we
changed the manager. Sometimes you need time to adapt. But we can reach
that level, we have the players and we just need to train together, we
play together, lose together.”
While a transfer to Madrid is in the balance, Hazard’s loyalty to
Chelsea is unyielding. Would he consider a move to a Premier League
club? “No chance. I am a blue! It means a lot to me. I cannot play for
another club in the country. That’s why we have to win the Europa
League,” he says.
Otherwise, everybody will have to hear (from Arsenal): “We have won,
we have won. For the fans it’s important. For the players it’s
important. For the coach it’s important. We are confident. You feel that
there’s something at stake. Our season hasn’t been top-top, but
finishing it with a European trophy will be good.”
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