We could read it all over the news, the speculations of Eden Hazard moving to Spain, where he would join Real Madrid as a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo. And while his transfer started off as the only speculation, Eden Hazard is unofficially already Real Madrid player, with the only thing missing being an official announcement.
FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – MAY 15: Eden Hazard of Chelsea shows appreciation to the fans following the Friendly Match match between New England Revolution and Chelsea at Gillette Stadium on May 15, 2019 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
Speculations of Hazard leaving Chelsea for Real Madrid are closer and closer to becoming reality. While there was no official announcement yet, we can expect the Belgian star to wear the Real Madrid shirt next season. His move to Real Madrid does seem like an obvious and easy decision on his part, however, the decision to leave was far from easy. Hazard had to decide between joining Real Madrid, a huge club, where he could win trophies, or stay at the Stamford Bridge, where he would remain the club’s star player. Glory or honour?
This a question many players needs to answer before moving to a bigger club. Some get persuaded by the promise of Champions League trophies, huge sums of money, and ultimately wearing a kit of one of the best clubs in the world. Others prioritize their loyalty to the club and value their status as the club hero. Former Chelsea midfielder Wright-Phillips has talked about this “issue” when he stated Hazard can either go to Spain, where he will have a much greater potential to win trophies or remain at Stamford Bridge, where he will be Chelsea’s main player.
The former Chelsea midfielder stated:
“It’s a hard one because Chelsea is an amazing club, the fan-base is amazing and the owners are amazing as well – everything about the club is amazing but it’s a hard one for Hazard”
“You have to ask yourself how far do you want to go in your career, what do you want to achieve and that will make his decision.”
Hazard decision is still not official, however by now we can all agree the Belgian superstar will most likely pack his bags and move to sunny Spain for the next season, where he will be a potential replacement for Ronaldo whose absence was felt in Real Madrid this season. We can only guess when the announcement will be made public, however, we expect to see it after Chelsea finish their Europa League finals or maybe even after the finals of UEFA Champions League. Either way, Chelsea will walk away from this deal with around €130 million, which is the asked price for Hazard, and should be more than enough for them to look for a decent replacement for Hazard, who has spent 9 years with the Blues, ever since he arrived from Lille in 2010.
In his long and rich career with Chelsea, Hazard won the English League cup, FA Cup, two EPL cups and one Europa League cup. With a total of 351 appearances for Chelsea, Hazard scored 108 goals and added 91 assists.
He was a key part of the team, who will surely miss him on and off the pitch. Who will be his replacement is yet to be seen, and while Hazard departure will be a huge loss for Chelsea, they have got a solid team who has enough depth to fill the gap left behind the Belgian star. At the end of the day, that is the only choice they have after receiving a transfer ban from FIFA due to some questionable practices in the past. Nonetheless, they should be able to keep Mateo Kovacic and Gonzalo Higuain on a loan.
Will Eden Hazard be a suitable replacement for Ronaldo, we can only guess, however, one thing is for sure, Hazard is an exceptional player, and a great addition to Real Madrid, who are going through a complete makeover, which, as speculations suggest just might bring another EPL player to their roster. That is if Liverpool will be ready to sell Salah.
