Eden Hazard finally signed with Real Madrid after spending close to 7 years at Chelsea where he won two Premiership titles, two Europa cups, one FA Cup title and a host of awards for a fee in the region of €100 million (£88.5 million) plus add-ons which could go as high as €150 million (£133.5 million).
The Belgium national team captain is the fourth signing for the Galacticos following the arrival of Luka Jovic, Eder Militao, and Rodrigo to the Bernabeu.
The Move: After two years of registering interest in signing the Ex-Chelsea skipper, the Madrid side finally succeeded in luring Hazard with a deal that could double his wages and increase his chances of winning the Ballon d’Or.
Hazard’s unveiling pulled up to 50,000 Real Madrid fans at the Bernabeu on Thursday, the first of its kind since the signing of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009 which pulled a record of over 70,000 fans. Recall that the club made over €100 million (£88.5 million) in the sales of Ronaldo’s replica shirt during the first year of his contract.
😘 Los #RMFans pidieron a @hazardeden10 que besara el escudo… ¡Y LO HIZO!#WelcomeHazard | #HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/eEOqChtRnJ
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) June 13, 2019
Brief Profile: Hazard was born on January 7th, 1991 and began his career in Belgium playing for local youth clubs. In 2005, he moved to France where he began his senior career, 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 the Lille team 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, thereby becoming the first non-French player to win the award.
In the 2009–10 season, Hazard captured the award again, becoming the first player to win it twice. He was also named to “the league’s Team of the Year”.
His Impressive Career: In the 2010–11 season, he was a part of the Lille team that won the league, as a result of his performances, was named the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year, the youngest player to win the award. Hazard was also given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo for his performances during the 2010–11 season.
In June 2012 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 the 2014–15 season, he helped Chelsea win the League Cup and Premier League, earning him the FWA Footballer of the Year and the PFA Players’ Player of the Year awards. Two years later he won his second English title as Chelsea secured the 2016–17 Premier League.
Other big names that have made money for Real Madrid
Christiano Ronaldo: The Portuguese national team captain and Juventus forward was signed from Manchester United in July 2009 for a club record fee of £84.6 million and on the first season as reported by Goal.com. Real Madrid reaped over €100 million in revenues, with over a million shirts sold in the city of Madrid alone, during the first year of his contract.
David Beckham: The Ex-England player signed for Real Madrid from Manchester United for a fee of €35 million in June 2003, and his shirt sold globally during his four seasons in the Spanish capital, with a million shirts reportedly sold in the first year.
Others: A host of galacticos have been signed by the Spanish money bag over the years, whose contracts paid off on and off the pitch; in terms of goals scored, shirt sales, endorsement deals, etc. The likes of Bale, Kaka, Rodriguez, Delima Ronaldo are typical examples.
Hazard’s Financial potentials: Hazard is undoubtedly a world class player who will most likely, prove his worth on the pitch and off the pitch. This is despite the fact that the lack of shirt number has made it difficult to track his replica shirt sales. Some fans have been reportedly sited in Qatar wearing Hazard real Madrid jersey with a number 7, despite the fact that he was unveiled shirtless on Thursday evening.