Cristiano's number '7' reserved for Hazard
The plan's club is to give Hazard the number 7 jersey currently occupied by Mariano after Modric, who wears number 10, refused to offer the jersey to the Belgian.
Eden Hazard was presented in front of the Santiago Bernabéu as a Real Madrid player on June 13. The most recent galactico signing and the first since James Rodríguez in 2014 did not have a jersey number that day and still doesn't as the club try to figure out who will and won't be with the team next season.
The plan Real Madrid have for Hazard is to give him the number 7 jersey. It was worn with success by Ronaldo, whose presentation was 10 years ago on Saturday, but the man who wore it last season, Mariano, did not reach the same heights with it on his back. His time at the club looks like it could end this summer with Roma and Spurs interested and that would leave the jersey free for their star summer signing.
The Belgian has worn the number 10 jersey for the majority of his career. He started wearing it during the 2011-12 season, his last with Lille. He wore the number 17 at Chelsea initially with Juan Mata occupying it when he first arrived in the Premier League.
"I asked Modric if he would give me the number 10," Hazard joked at the presentation. "But he said no. I'll have to look for another number but that isn't important at the moment, it's playing in this jersey with this crest on it."
Adidas not selling Hazard jerseys with numbers on the back
Adidas are not selling Mariano jerseys with number 7 in the stores around the Bernabéu but you can still get them online. And they are selling Hazard shirts with no number for the moment.
The other option is the number 11, which is currently being occupied by Gareth Bale. If Real Madrid don't end up selling Mariano but do sell Bale, it will be the number 11 that Hazard wears.
Both players are in the same boat. They are not in Zidane's plans and have to leave to play. They are both rejecting the chance to leave for now with their wages proving a stumbling block for teams interested in their servives. Mariano is on over €4 million and Bale is making €14.5 million and unwilling to take a pay cut.