Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a winger or attacking midfielder for Lille, Chelsea, Real Madrid, and the Belgium national team.

However, injury woes, subpar performances, and a lack of fitness led to him only playing a limited number of games, departing the club in June 2023 and retiring from professional football four months later.

[11] 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.

"[5] 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.

"[52] 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.

[79][80] Fours days after, Hazard made his UEFA Champions League debut in a 2–2 group stage draw with Russian club CSKA Moscow.

[93][94] On 15 April, Hazard marked his 100 consecutive Ligue 1 appearance, which to date, is the longest current run in the French top flight, by scoring a goal and assisting on another in a 4–1 win over Ajaccio.

In the contest, Hazard provided the assist for Branislav Ivanović's opening goal and, minutes later, won a penalty, which Frank Lampard converted, earning his side a 2–0 victory.

[121][122] Again Hazard came off the bench to make an impact for Chelsea, scoring a goal and providing an assist to Ramires, as the team came back 2–0 down to salvage a 2–2 draw against Manchester United in the quarter-finals of the 2012–13 FA Cup on 10 March, setting up a replay.

[citation needed] One of Chelsea's first games of the season was against Bayern Munich in the 2013 UEFA Super Cup, in which Hazard played a vital role in the buildup to the first goal and scored the second, but went on to an eventual 5–4 defeat in the penalty shoot-out.

[140] On 5 October 2014, he won a penalty against Arsenal after being fouled by Laurent Koscielny, and then converted it himself past Wojciech Szczęsny to open a 2–0 victory which made Chelsea the last unbeaten team in the league.

[154] On 27 October, in the fourth round of the League Cup away to Stoke, Hazard was the only player to miss in Chelsea's penalty shootout elimination, his attempt being saved by Jack Butland.

[155] Hazard endured a 2,358-minute scoreless run across 30 matches until 31 January 2016, when he scored from the penalty spot, his 50th goal for Chelsea in all competitions, in a 5–1 win over Milton Keynes Dons in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

[200] Having arrived at training camp out of shape,[201][202] Hazard made his debut on 14 September 2019, coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 home victory over Levante in the 2019–20 La Liga.

[204] Despite a slow start to life in the Spanish capital, Hazard eventually rediscovered his form, completing 38 dribbles and giving two assists in six matches,[205][206] but this streak, which began in the 5–0 victory over Leganés on 30 October, ended when he suffered a microfracture to his right ankle on 26 November in the Champions League group stage game against Paris Saint-Germain after a challenge by Thomas Meunier.

[207] Hazard went on to miss 16 Madrid matches across four competitions, which included the first El Clásico of the season, the Supercopa de España victory in Jeddah and the entire Copa del Rey campaign which ended with a quarter-final exit to Sociedad.

[214] On 5 May 2021, Hazard apologised following criticism for laughing with former teammates Kurt Zouma and Édouard Mendy after Real Madrid's 3–1 aggregate defeat to Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final.

Belgium were minutes away from a victory, courtesy of an own goal from David Rochela, which Hazard was particularly instrumental in, however Barcelona striker Bojan Krkić equalised for his nation to send the match into extra time.

[256] Marc Wilmots, assistant coach of the national team, responded to the media reports stating "Some people only see Eden's qualities" and "the French press are sometimes blinded by his moments of magic".

[275] He won another penalty in a Euro 2016 qualifying match on 3 September when fouled by Bosnia and Herzegovina's Ognjen Vranješ, and converted it past his Chelsea clubmate Asmir Begović to conclude Belgium's 3–1 comeback victory.

[277] On 10 October, Hazard scored a spot-kick again after Óscar Sonejee's handball, in a 4–1 win over Andorra which sealed Belgium's qualification to the continental championship for the first time since co-hosting Euro 2000.

[289] Hazard was again in scintillating form in the quarter-finals as he helped lead Belgium to its second World Cup semi-final in their history with a 2–1 victory over five-time champions Brazil.

Following the departures of fellow playmakers Yohan Cabaye and Gervinho in 2011, during the 2011–12 season, Garcia played Hazard in a creative role as a central attacking midfielder, while also allowing the player to roam back onto the wing if necessary.

[52] His speed, acceleration, and dribbling skills, combined with his creativity,[303][304][305] as well as his flair, balance, agility, and low centre of gravity, courtesy of his diminutive stature (1.73 m/5 feet 8 inches),[306] allowed him to retain possession, take on defenders, and beat opponents in one on one situations.

[307][308] At Chelsea, Hazard matured into a world class player and was primarily used as a left midfielder, a position which enabled him to cut into the centre and strike on goal with his stronger right foot.

[322] Puel's sentiments were later echoed by former Marseille manager and media personality Rolland Courbis who commented, "At times it looks to me like Lionel Messi on the right-hand side.

"[51] His vision, described as being the trait he has improved on the most, coupled with his passing, has also allowed him to develop into an effective playmaker and assist provider,[323][324][325] which in turn, combined with his finishing ability, enabled him to both score and create goals.

[330] Lille youth academy director Jean-Michel Vandamme countered both managers' criticism by arguing that Hazard simply possesses an intellectual honesty that is out of the ordinary and unexpected of today's footballer declaring, "He is a real competitor, not a cheat, nor a moaner, because you don't hear him complaining when he gets foul.

He appeared in an advert for the Nike Green Speed II alongside Mario Götze, Theo Walcott, Raheem Sterling, Christian Eriksen and Stephan El Shaarawy in November 2012.

[337] On 26 June 2017, Hazard became a part-owner of expansion North American Soccer League franchise San Diego 1904 FC to begin play in 2018, alongside Demba Ba, Yohan Cabaye and Moussa Sow.