Eden Michael Hazard (
French pronunciation: [edɛn azaʁ]; born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays for
Chelsea and the
Belgium national team. He primarily plays as an
attacking midfielder and a
winger. Hazard's creativity, speed, and technical ability are widely acknowledged.
[3][4][5]
He has been described as "a superb passer" and has earned critical
acclaim for his playing style, which has led to the media, coaches, and
players drawing comparisons to
FIFA Ballon d'Or winners
Lionel Messi and
Cristiano Ronaldo.
[3][6][7][8][9][10][11] Hazard is often ranked by coaches, colleagues, and commentators as one of the best players in the world.
[12][13][14][15]
Hazard is the son of former Belgian footballers and began his
football career in Belgium playing for local clubs Royal Stade Brainois
and
Tubize. In 2005, he moved to France joining
first division club
Lille.
Hazard spent two years in the club's academy and, at the age of 16,
made his professional debut in November 2007. He went on to become an
integral part of Lille under manager
Rudi Garcia, racking up over 190 appearances. In his first full season as a starter, he won the
National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP)
Young Player of the Year award becoming the first non-French player to win the award.
[16] In the
2009–10 season, Hazard captured the award again becoming the first player to win the award twice.
[17] He was also named to the league's
Team of the Year.
In the
2010–11 season, he was a part of the Lille team that won the
league and cup double and, as a result of his performances, was named the
UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year becoming the youngest player to win the award.
[18] Hazard was also given the
Bravo Award by Italian magazine
Guerin Sportivo for his performances during the 2010–11 season.
[19] In June 2012, after spending over eight years at Lille, Hazard signed for English club
Chelsea, where he went on to win the
UEFA Europa League in his first season and the
PFA Young Player of the Year in his second. In 2014–15 season, he helped Chelsea win the
League Cup and
Premier League, earning him the
FWA Footballer of the Year award and the
PFA Players' Player of the Year award, made by silversmith
Thomas Lyte.
[20]
Hazard is a
Belgium international, having represented his nation at
under-17 and
under-19 level. Prior to starring for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that qualified for the
2007 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship and
2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Hazard made his senior international debut in November 2008, at the age of 17 years and 316 days, in a
friendly match against
Luxembourg. Nearly three years after his debut, Hazard scored his first international goal against
Kazakhstan
in October 2011. He has since earned over 60 caps, and was a member of
the Belgian squad which reached the quarter-finals of the
2014 FIFA World Cup.
Hazard was born in
La Louvière and grew up in
Braine-le-Comte. His mother, Carine, and father, Thierry, were both footballers. His father spent most of his career playing at
semi-professional level with
La Louvière in the
Belgian Second Division.
[21] He played mainly as a
defensive midfielder.
[21] His mother played as a
striker in the
Belgian Women's First Division and stopped playing when she was three months pregnant with Eden.
[21][22] After playing football, both parents became sports teachers.
[21] Thierry retired from his position in 2009 in order to devote more time to his children.
[21]
Hazard is the eldest of four children. He has three brothers, all of whom play football, including
Thorgan, who joined him at
Chelsea in 2012 and had previously progressed through the youth ranks of Lille's
biggest rivals Lens.
[23][24][25][26] Hazard's other younger brothers are
Kylian and Ethan. In 15 July 2013, Kylian joined
White Star Bruxelles, but now plays for
Zulte Waregem, while Ethan remains playing in the youth academy of Eden's former club
Tubize.
[21][24][27][28]
Hazard and his three brothers were raised in a comfortable
environment with their parents ensuring they had whatever they needed to
excel.
[29]
The family lived "no more than three metres" from a football training
ground and the brothers often ventured onto a training pitch through a
small hole in order to hone and develop their skills.
[22]
Club career
Early career
Hazard began his football career playing for hometown club Royal
Stade Brainois at the age of four. During his time at the club, one of
his youth coaches described him as a "gifted" player. He added: "He knew
everything. I had nothing to teach him".
[30] Hazard spent eight years at the club before moving to
Tubize.
While at Tubize, he was spotted by a Lille scout while playing in a
local tournament with the club. The scout's subsequent report on the
player prompted club officials to meet with Hazard's father and offer
the young player an
aspirant (youth) contract.
[31]
Hazard's parents accepted the offer from Lille with hopes that the training facilities in France would be better.
[29] Hazard's father later admitted that the decision to let Eden and, later Thorgan, join clubs in the
North of France
was the best solution stating "They remained so close to home and, at
the same time, they integrated at structures where they could grow,
because in Belgium, unfortunately, it's a little empty for the training
of youth".
[22]
Lille
Hazard joined Lille in 2005 and spent two years developing in the
club's local sports school, due to its youth academy in Luchin not being
in operation at that time.
[32] On 28 May 2007, he signed his first professional contract agreeing to a three year deal with Lille.
[31] At the start of the
2007–08 season, at the age of 16, Hazard was promoted to the club's reserve team in the
Championnat de France amateur, the fourth level of
French football, though he still played with Lille's under-18 team in its league and the
Coupe Gambardella. Hazard made his amateur debut on 1 September 2007 in a league match against
Racing Club de France appearing as a second-half substitute in a 3–1 defeat.
[33] He made his first start a week later in the team's 1–0 defeat to
Lesquin.
[34]
After spending the majority of October and the early part of November
playing with the club's under-18 team, on 14 November, due to several
players being on international duty, Hazard was called up to the senior
team by manager
Claude Puel to participate in a friendly match against Belgian club
Bruges on 16 November.
[35] He appeared as a substitute in the match and, as a result of his performance, was included in the 18-man squad to face
Nancy in a league match on 24 November.
[36] Hazard, subsequently, made his professional debut in the match coming on as a substitute in the 78th minute.
[37]
Hazard returned to the club's reserve team and spent December playing
with the squad. Following the winter break, Hazard returned to the
first team in January and made substitute appearances in three league
matches against
Metz,
Sochaux, and
Paris Saint-Germain.
[38][39][40]
Following the match against Paris Saint-Germain, he was demoted back to
amateur level where he played concurrently with the reserve team in the
fourth division and the under-18 team in the Coupe Gambardella. On 17
May 2008, he scored his first amateur goal in a 3–2 victory over
Vitré.
[41]
Hazard finished his amateur career with 11 appearances and one goal,
helping the reserve team finished in fifth place, which was first among
professional clubs' reserve teams playing in the group.
[42][43]
2008–09 season
For the
2008–09
season, Hazard was given the number 26 shirt after playing with the
number 33 shirt in his debut season. He was also promoted to the senior
team permanently by new manager
Rudi Garcia.
Early on, he made substitute appearances regularly making his season
debut as a substitute on 14 September 2008 against Sochaux in a 1–1
draw.
[44] One of his substitute appearances proved beneficial against
Auxerre on 20 September. With Lille trailing 2–1 in the waning minutes of the match, Hazard, after Lille took a
corner kick,
quickly scooped up a short clearance from Auxerre and took a
right-footed shot just outside the box. It beat the keeper and drew the
score 2–2 in the 88th minute.
[45] With Lille's confidence high, the club won the match 3–2 in
injury time following a goal from
Tulio de Melo.
[46] Hazard's first career goal resulted in him becoming the youngest goalscorer in the club's history.
[47]
Four days after scoring his first professional goal, Hazard made his first professional start in a 4–2 defeat on
penalties to
Montpellier in the
Coupe de la Ligue.
[48]
After featuring as a substitute in the team's next five league matches,
on 15 November, Hazard made his first professional league start against
Saint-Étienne. He capped the appearance by scoring the opening goal in the club's 3–0 victory.
[49]
His assured performances with the club resulted in Lille offering him a
three year contract extension, which he agreed to on 18 November 2008,
tying him to the club until 2012.
[50]
After featuring as a substitute in December, Hazard returned to the
starting lineup in January. On 23 January, he scored the second goal in a
3–0 win over amateur club
Dunkerque in Round of 32 of the
Coupe de France.
[51] Two weeks later, he scored the match-winning goal in a league match against
Sochaux and, on 22 February, assisted on the winner against
Monaco.
[52][53] In the Round of 16 of the Coupe de France, Hazard netted a goal in a 3–2 win over the competition's
defending champions Lyon.
[54] On 26 April, he scored the opening goal against
Marseille, though Lille lost the match 2–1.
[55]
In the final ten league matches of the campaign, Hazard started eight
and contributed to the team finishing in fifth place, which resulted in
Lille qualifying for the newly created
UEFA Europa League. After the season, he was named the
National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP)
Young Player of the Year, becoming the first international player to achieve the honor.
[17]
2009–10 season
"Eden is technically gifted and very fast. He will be a major star in the future. I would take him to
Real Madrid with my eyes closed."
Following the 2008–09 season, constant media speculation occurred in
numerous countries regarding Hazard's availability on the transfer
market. Despite Lille chairman Michel Seydoux declaring the player off
limits and Hazard stating that he wanted to remain at the club for at
least another season, several clubs declared interest in the player.
[57][58] These included English clubs
Arsenal and
Manchester United, Italian club
Internazionale, and Spanish clubs
Barcelona and
Real Madrid. French football legend
Zinedine Zidane personally recommended the player to the latter club.
[59][60][61][62][63]
Hazard began the
2009–10 season
on a positive note scoring in Lille's first competitive match of the
season. The goal, contributing to the team's 2–0 victory, came against
Serbian club
FK Sevojno in the first leg of the club's
third qualifying round match in the
UEFA Europa League.
[64] On 27 August, he scored his second career
European goal in the club's second leg tie in the playoff round against Belgian club
Genk. It was Lille's final goal in the club's 4–2 victory.
[65] The 6–3 aggregate scoreline assured the club progression to the
Europa League group stage.
On 22 October, Hazard scored a goal in Lille's important 3–0 victory over Italian club
Genoa
in the 84th minute after entering as a substitute 10 minutes prior.
Upon receiving the ball on the left wing, Hazard proceeded to dash
through the midfield dribbling past six Genoa defenders before finishing
at the 18-yard box.
[66][67] A month later, Hazard was instrumental in Lille's 5–1 thrashing of Czech club
Slavia Prague
as he was partly responsible for the opening goal — slicing through the
defense and delivering a cross near post, which went off Slavia player
Marek Suchý resulting in an
own goal.
[68]
On 20 December, Hazard scored his first league goal of the season in the club's 3–0 win over
Le Mans. He also provided both the assists on the other two goals.
[69] On 30 January, Hazard scored the only goal in Lille's win over Derby du Nord rivals
Lens.
[70] The victory helped the club achieve stability in the league by keeping them in the
UEFA Champions League
places. It also ended a disaster of a week which saw Lille suffer
elimination from both of France's cup competitions. Five days later,
Hazard and Lille reached an agreement on a contract extension, which
will keep the player at the club until 2014.
[71][72] On 11 March, Hazard scored the only goal in Lille's victory over English club
Liverpool in the first leg of the club's
UEFA Europa League tie converting a
free kick in the 83rd minute.
[73] Three weeks later, Hazard provided two assists in the club's 4–1 win over fellow title contenders
Montpellier.
[74]
The two passes brought his league tally to seven, tied for second in
the league. For his impressive displays in the month of March, Hazard
was given the
UNFP Player of the Month award.
[75]
On 29 April, Hazard was nominated for the
UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year award. He was also nominated, for the second consecutive season, for the Young Player of the Year award.
[76]
On 9 May, Hazard was awarded the UNFP Young Player of the Year trophy
for the second consecutive season. He became the first player since its
inception in 1994 to win the award twice.
[17] Hazard lost out on the Player of the Year award, which was awarded to Lyon
striker Lisandro López.
2010–11 season
Hazard began the
2010–11 campaign as a starter featuring in Lille's first six league matches of the season, as well as matches in the
UEFA Europa League. On 29 August 2010, he scored his first goal of the season in a 1–1 draw with
Nice.
[77]
In late September, Hazard began to struggle with inconsistency and was
benched by Garcia in an effort to "allow him (Hazard) to breathe and
learn that his performances were insufficient".
[78] Hazard, subsequently, appeared as a substitute in the team's 2–1 defeat to Portuguese club
Sporting in the Europa League and as a substitute in the next three league matches against
Toulouse,
Montpellier, and Lyon.
[79][80][81]
Hazard later admitted that his first bout of inconsistency affected him
stating "The first two months were a bit tough. I wouldn’t say that I
began doubting my abilities, but I definitely went through a really
patchy spell".
[82]
On 7 October, Belgium national team manager
Georges Leekens,
citing Hazard's recent spell on the bench at Lille, said that the
player needed to work harder, both physically and mentally, to regain
his past year's form. The team's assistant coach,
Marc Wilmots, also stated that Hazard often displayed a lazy mentality while training with the national team.
[83]
Garcia responded to Leekens comments the following day stating that he
thought they were "excessive" and that "Eden is only 19 years old" and
can still "make more progress in all areas."
[84] Following Belgium's match against
Kazakhstan,
in which Hazard failed to start or even appear on the substitute's
bench, Leekens responded to Garcia's comments declaring that he would
stand by his previous comments and that players must think about the
team and not themselves.
[85]
Hazard, himself, later reflected on Leekens and Garcia comments in
February 2011 stating "I learned a lot during those few weeks, mentally
speaking. And since then things have got better. The national side has
had a fair bit to do with that – I get a lot out of being a part of it".
[82]
Following the international break, Hazard recaptured his scoring form netting the final goal in Lille's 4–1 victory over
Caen in the
Coupe de la Ligue on 27 October.
[86] Ten days later, he scored his second league goal of the season in a 3–1 win against the league table leaders
Brest.
[87] On 21 November, Hazard assisted on both Lille's goals in a 2–1 win over
Monaco.
[88]
The victory continued the club's domestic unbeaten streak, which led to
Lille topping the league table following an emphatic 6–3 victory
against
Lorient on 5 December.
[89] At the turn of the calendar year, Hazard scored in the team's first match against amateur club
Forbach in the
Coupe de France. Lille won the match 3–1.
[90] In the team's following match, he assisted on goals scored by
Moussa Sow and
Gervinho in a 2–0 league victory over
Nice.
[91]
On 19 January, Hazard scored the second goal in a 3–0 victory over
Nancy.
[92]
On 4 March, Lille officials confirmed that Hazard had added an extra
year to his contract. The new deal tied him to the club until 2015 and
also made him the highest paid player in Ligue 1 beginning with the
2011–12 season.
[93][94][95] In his first match after the news, Hazard scored the opening goal in Lille's 2–1 away win over title rivals Marseille.
[96] The goal was scored on a left-footed shot from almost 35 metres (38 yd) out and was clocked at 95 km/h (59 mph).
[97]
On 2 April, Hazard capped his 100th league appearance with Lille by scoring the second goal in a 3–1 win over Caen.
[98] The goal tied his career-high for goals in a season and also moved Lille eight points clear at the top of the league table.
[99] For his performances in the month of March, Hazard was named the UNFP Player of the Month for the second time in his career.
[100]
On 19 April, after appearing as a first-half substitute, he scored the
opening goal in Lille's 2–0 Coupe de France semi-final victory over
Nice.
[101] The victory inserted the club into the
2011 Coupe de France Final; the club's first appearance in the competition's final since
1955. On 7 May, Hazard converted a game-winning free-kick goal in the team's 1–0 win over Nancy.
[102] Three days later, he was nominated for the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season.
[103]
In the
Coupe de France final, Hazard played 89 minutes as Lille defeated
Paris Saint-Germain 1–0 at the
Stade de France.
[104] A week later, Lille clinched the
Ligue 1 title by drawing 2–2 away to Paris Saint-Germain, achieving the club's first league championship since the
1953–54 season and the club's first
double since the
1945–46 season.
[105][106]
The domestic cup and league title were the first two honours in
Hazard's career. On the day after Lille won the league, Hazard was named
the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year becoming the youngest player ever
to win the award.
[107] He was also rewarded with a place in the organization's Team of the Year for the second consecutive season.
[18]
2011–12 season
Hazard taking a corner-kick for Lille in 2011
Ahead of the
2011–12 season, Hazard switched to the number 10 shirt.
[108] In Lille's first competitive match of the season against Marseille in the
2011 Trophée des Champions, Hazard scored the team's second goal, which put Lille up 2–0. Marseille would later come back to win the match 5–4.
[109] On 20 August, in the team's third league match of the season, Hazard assisted on Lille's opening goal, scored by
Benoît Pedretti, in a 2–1 win over Caen.
[110] A month later on 10 September, he scored two goals in a 3–1 away victory against Saint-Étienne.
[111][112] Fours days after, Hazard made his
UEFA Champions League debut in a 2–2 group stage draw with Russian club
CSKA Moscow.
[113]