Summary
Eden Hazard was once punched by two former teammates as a teenager.
The young Belgian had many accusations of being lazy and having attitude problems during the early stages of his career.
The reality check appeared to send Hazard down the right path as he became a Premier League great.
Eden Hazard may be one of the best players to have ever stepped foot on a Premier League pitch, but one key moment as a teenager may have prevented him from throwing it all away. The Belgian was a naturally gifted footballer, whose skill was up there with the best in the world – particularly during his time at Chelsea.
Hazard made the move to Stamford Bridge from French side LOSC Lille in 2012 and would go on to win numerous honours at the club, including two Premier League titles, before an ill-fated move to Real Madrid in 2019. While his ability was unquestionable, the winger’s attitude sometimes came into question, as accusations of him not working hard enough in training surfaced throughout his career. This was apparent even in his youth, leading to Hazard receiving a very rude awakening.
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Former Teammate Reveals Hazard Was Beaten Up Twice at Lille
The winger rubbed many people up the wrong way very early on in his career
Speaking to The Sun in 2017, former Lille defender Gregory Tafforeau recalled how Hazard’s attitude when he first broke into the senior squad at the age of 16 rubbed people up the wrong way, which culminated in the youngster being on the receiving end of not one, but two beatings.
“Hazard turned up for his first Lille training session with his socks rolled down, his laces undone and without shinpads,” Tafforeau explained. “As for his standard, he trained as though he was a club veteran. That annoyed the senior players.
“Soon afterwards I could hear voices being raised in the fitness room, and I heard a loud whack. I went in and saw Eden holding his cheek. Franck Beria, one of our star players, was there and his eyes were bloodshot with rage.
“It turned out Eden had bumped into Franck in the city centre, and taken the mickey out of him in front of everyone. Two days later he got another good slap from our defender Nicolas Plestan. The lad was in tears. From then on we noticed a change in his attitude.”
The reality check appeared to be exactly what the exciting attacker needed, as he would go on to make his debut for the club in 2007, still at the age of 16. This made him the third-youngest player in the club’s history, though he has since dropped to fifth in the standings.
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Hazard’s Training Efforts Questioned by Other Big Names
Jose Mourinho and Toni Kroos have both been critical about the Belgian’s efforts in the past
Despite the incidents in France seeming to have a profound affect on Hazard and his attitude, issues with his performance levels in training continued to persist even during his best years. He would win his first Premier League title under legendary manager Jose Mourinho, who revealed that the 34-year-old was one of the worst trainers he had ever experienced.
“The truth is what you see from him, he is an amazing player with awful training,” the Portuguese coach told talkSPORT in 2021. “You can only imagine what he could be with a super-professional attitude in training.
“He he gets onto the pitch every morning and… he doesn’t work much. When he gets onto the pitch you don’t see the reflection of a week of work, you just see a reflection of his talent.”
“He is this amazing player and you can imagine if he was a top professional. But in terms of his fitness, his speed, his condition, he would be a much better player (if he trained properly). What you see is just the talent that got Eden to where he is.”
After securing his dream move to Real Madrid after seven successful years in West London, things began to fall apart for Hazard who struggled with fitness and injury concerns throughout his stint in the Spanish capital. In the end, he only made 76 appearances for Los Blancos, registering just seven goals at a value of £31 million per strike.
His struggles were summed up by former teammate Toni Kroos’ comments after Jude Bellingham joined the club in 2023. The German was asked about the transfer fee being paid for the young Englishman, to which he responded “We also had someone who came for a lot of money and virtually let his career rest. A lot of money and I think everyone would say in retrospect: That was not such a good transfer.”
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All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt – accurate as of 07/01/2025.
