{"id":291932,"date":"2023-10-11T00:15:17","date_gmt":"2023-10-11T00:15:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/?p=291932"},"modified":"2023-10-11T00:15:17","modified_gmt":"2023-10-11T00:15:17","slug":"matt-barlow-hazard-was-a-star-at-chelsea-so-why-has-he-quit-at-32","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/matt-barlow-hazard-was-a-star-at-chelsea-so-why-has-he-quit-at-32\/","title":{"rendered":"MATT BARLOW: Hazard was a star at Chelsea&#8230; so why has he quit at 32?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>MATT BARLOW: Eden Hazard was the jewel of Chelsea&#8217;s glittering success and the best footballer in England&#8230; so why has the playmaker quit aged 32?<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Eden Hazard has confirmed his decision to retire from football at 32\u00a0years old\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Former Belgian international has been without a club since leaving Real Madrid\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport&#8217;s podcast It&#8217;s All Kicking Off!<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For a time in the midst of the 2010s, Eden Hazard was simply the finest footballer on these shores and if one clip can encapsulate his individual brilliance, it is a goal against Arsenal on the way to his second Premier League title.<\/p>\n<p>Thirteen touches in 10 seconds, collecting the ball on the bounce in his own half, setting off with beautiful balance, dancing towards the Matthew Harding end, jinking and feinting, all dropped shoulders and pops of power, speed and strength. In his wake, a red-and-white trail of devastation as he clipped a shot into the net and spun away beaming with delight to slide on his knees.<\/p>\n<p>In Spain, there were Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. In England, there was Hazard and he too was a joy to behold even if, as he announced his retirement at the age of 32, he sometimes left us with a suspicion there might have been more.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018You must listen to yourself and say stop at the right time,\u2019 said Hazard, who had been a free agent since agreeing to terminate his Real Madrid contract a year early in June. \u2018After 16 years and more than 700 matches played, I have decided to end my career. I was able to realise my dream. I have played and had fun on many pitches around the world.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Football was always about fun for Hazard. Jose Mourinho returned to Chelsea in 2013 desperate to drive him down the Ronaldo path of dedication to maximise his talent, only to discover the Belgian was happier dashing home after training to play ball with his kids than staying behind to do another thousand sit-ups.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/21\/76398279-12616419-image-a-61_1696970873589.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Forward Eden Hazard was the jewel of Chelsea&#8217;s glittering success\u00a0in the midst of the 2010s\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/21\/76398281-12616419-image-a-62_1696970887140.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>His strike against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in 2017 encapsulate his individual brilliance<\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p>Mourinho, Antonio Conte and Maurizio Sarri would all despair at his work-rate off the ball and yet were able to seize upon his outstanding natural ability and forge teams that enabled it to sparkle. Hazard was the jewel of those Chelsea title triumphs under Mourinho in 2015, when he was FWA Footballer of the Year and PFA Player of the Year, and again under Conte in 2017.<\/p>\n<p>Although football was a struggle for him after the \u20ac100million (\u00a386m) move to Madrid, there had been nagging ankle and heel problems before the transfer. Always dribbling and twisting with explosive bursts of speed, his natural game invited injury. Full backs kicked him when they could not tackle him. Mourinho would regularly plead for greater protection from referees.<\/p>\n<p>In his final season as a Chelsea player, Hazard put in a full shift, clocking up 62 appearances for club and country and scoring 26 goals, including two in the Europa League final, Arsenal the victims again as he signed out with another scintillating display.<\/p>\n<p>Real Madrid spent big on proven quality. At the age of 28, these ought to have been his prime years but he simply never got going in Spain. There were accusations Hazard was out of shape when he reported for the first pre-season but the real problems set in with another ankle injury, suffered against Paris Saint-Germain in November 2019 after a challenge from his Belgium team-mate Thomas Meunier.<\/p>\n<p>Hazard returned as Covid brought football to a halt, then suffered a series of setbacks and associated muscle injuries, unable to establish any rhythm as Vinicius Junior broke in and made the position on the left wing his own. Over four years at Real, he made only 30 starts in the league.<\/p>\n<p>He did finally get his hands on the European Cup in 2022 although his contribution was limited to a couple of fleeting appearances from the bench and an hour in an embarrassing defeat by Sheriff Tiraspol in the group stage. He was an unused substitute in the final against Liverpool.<\/p>\n<p>Where\u2019s the fun in that for a footballer who cares more for the feeling of a ball at his feet than a medal around his neck or another million in the bank account?<\/p>\n<p>In truth, the Hazard who scored that goal against Arsenal has not been seen for some time. It is as if, 16 years after his debut at 16 for Lille, his body has decided enough is enough. The ankles could take no more.<\/p>\n<p>So cherish the seven years we had with him in England, with 352 appearances for Chelsea in which he scored 110 goals, made 92 assists, won the Premier League and Europa League twice, the FA Cup and the League Cup.<\/p>\n<p>And don\u2019t get hung up on what might have been because we were fortunate to witness one of the great players of the modern age.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/10\/76372627-12613973-image-a-10_1696929986655.jpg\" height=\"438\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Eden Hazard has confirmed his retirement from football at age 32 via a post on social media<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/10\/76373057-12613973-image-a-30_1696930455152.jpg\" height=\"395\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Hazard made a lasting impact at Chelsea during his seven years with the west London side<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/10\/76102259-12613973-Eden_Hazard_remains_a_free_agent_after_Real_Madrid_tore_up_his_c-a-1_1696929326450.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>The winger failed to find a new club after being released by Real Madrid during the summer<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/10\/22\/76398879-12616419-image-a-63_1696971615074.jpg\" height=\"471\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<h3>IT&#8217;S ALL KICKING OFF!\u00a0<\/h3>\n<p><span>It&#8217;s All Kicking Off\u00a0is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football, launching with a preview show today and every week this season.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube , Apple Music and Spotify<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Your browser does not support iframes.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2017\/08\/02\/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png\" width=\"636\" height=\"90\"><br \/>\nSource: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12616419\/MATT-BARLOW-Eden-Hazard-jewel-Chelseas-glittering-success-best-footballer-England-playmaker-blessed-power-speed-strength-quit-aged-32.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>MATT BARLOW: Eden Hazard was the jewel of Chelsea&#8217;s glittering success and the best footballer in England&#8230; so why has the playmaker quit aged 32? <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/matt-barlow-hazard-was-a-star-at-chelsea-so-why-has-he-quit-at-32\/\" title=\"MATT BARLOW: Hazard was a star at Chelsea&#8230; so why has he quit at 32?\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":291931,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>MATT BARLOW: Hazard was a star at Chelsea... so why has he quit at 32? - Sportstoft<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/matt-barlow-hazard-was-a-star-at-chelsea-so-why-has-he-quit-at-32\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MATT BARLOW: Hazard was a star at Chelsea... so why has he quit at 32? - Sportstoft\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"MATT BARLOW: Eden Hazard was the jewel of Chelsea&#8217;s glittering success and the best footballer in England&#8230; so why has the playmaker quit aged 32? 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