The former captain of the Belgian national side, Eden Hazard, has called time on his football career, announcing his retirement on October 9 2023.
The former Chelsea star had a brilliant career, but the last few years were torrid as he struggled for game time and injuries.
Hazard started his career brightly, with many football seers prophesying that he would rule the world.
The talented Belgian number ten had the talent that saw the world craving for his services.
Hazard didn't quite hit the heights expected of him, but he dared to live up to the billing.
The undoing of the Belgian midfielder was his Real Madrid move that did not pan out as expected, and he watched his star fizzle out.
For all the love Hazard enjoyed with club and country, how did he fare against African opposition?
Hazard vs African opposition
Belgium has not played many matches against African opposition, and Hazard has featured in six.
In the six matches Hazard played, he won four, drew one and lost the other. Hazard also has a decent record against African teams, scoring three goals in those games.
The countries Hazard has played against include Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria and Ivory Coast.
He played twice against Tunisia and Egypt and once against Algeria and Ivory Coast.
While Ivory Coast is the only African team Hazard failed to record a win against, Egypt is the only country the Belgian has lost to.
FIFA World Cup 2018: Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard brace gives Belgium big win vs Tunisia | football https://t.co/pCaHhn0M6I pic.twitter.com/BrKWw2rx0j
— My Need News (@MyNeedNews1) June 23, 2018
Hazard's stats against African teams
Hazard announced his retirement from international football on December 7 2022, after scoring 33 goals in 126 appearances.
Against African teams, he played a total of 376 minutes and scored three goals.
While playing for Belgium, the team scored 14 goals and conceded seven. In all six games, no Belgian player has scored more goals than him.
He is tied on three goals with Romelu Lukaku and Marouane Fellaini.
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Eden Hazard vs African opposition |
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| # | Match | Date | Competition | Result | Goals | Minutes played |
| 1 | vs Ivory Coast | March 5 2014 | Friendly | 2-2 | – | 28 |
| 2 | vs Tunisia | June 7 2014 | Friendly | 1-0 | – | 74 |
| 3 | vs Algeria | June 17, 2014 | World Cup | 2-1 | – | 90 |
| 4 | vs Egypt | June 6 2018 | Friendly | 3-0 | 1 | 45 |
| 5 | vs Tunisia | June 23 2018 | World Cup | 5-2 | 2 | 68 |
| 6 | vs Egypt | November 18 2022 | Friendly | 1-2 | – | 71 |
| Total | 14-7 | 3 | 376 | |||
Transfer history and honours
Hazard started his youth career with the youth side of French team LOSC Lille. He graduated to the senior side on July 1 2008. He spent three years with Lille.
During this period, he won Ligue 1 (2010–11), Coupe de France (2010–11), Ligue 1 Player of the Year (2010–11 and 2011–12) and the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year (2008–09 & 2009–10).
He also won several other titles with Chelsea and Real Madrid, including the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Champions League.
Hazard won other titles with the English and Spanish sides. They include the Premier League, La Liga, FA Cup, Copa del Rey, the League/EFL Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.
Hazard also won individual awards with Chelsea and the Belgian national team.
In the 2018/19 season, he won the Premier League Playmaker of the Season.
Other awards include the Premier League Player of the Month (October 2016, September 2018) and the Premier League Player of the Season (2014–15).
Hazard was named the Belgian Sportsman of the Year in 2018 and won the FIFA World Cup Silver Ball that year.
Chelsea fans will remember him for his time with the West London club, but his deepest regret would be his move to Real Madrid.
Despite completing his club trophy haul with the Spanish giants, he contributed little to nothing to their success.
Despite a brilliant period at Chelsea, he struggled in his time with Real Madrid. Los Blancos signed him to replace the massively successful Cristiano Ronaldo.
Eden HAZARD – World Cup 2018.
pic.twitter.com/YYPExSrojb— Peter Moilcuh #4RAKATS (@abdoulvye) October 10, 2023
The Belgian star, who led Belgium to a third-place finish at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, didn't quite settle in at Real Madrid.
He struggled to find his form and the upsurge of Vinicius Junior brought his time at Real Madrid to an end.
Both parties agreed to terminate his contract before its conclusion.
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Transfer history |
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| Season | Date | Left | Joined | Fee |
| 23/24 | Jul 1, 2023 | Real Madrid | Without Club | – |
| 19/20 | Jul 1, 2019 | Chelsea | Real Madrid | €115m |
| 12/13 | Jul 1, 2012 | LOSC Lille | Chelsea | €35m |
| 08/09 | Jul 1, 2008 | LOSC Lille U19 | LOSC Lille | – |
This article was most recently revised and updated 3 weeks ago
