Eden Hazard's one problem that saw Barcelona "reject" him
Bojan Krkic explains why he ruled out signing the former Belgian player for Barcelona.
Eden Hazard, one of Florentino Pérez’s last marquee signings for Real Madrid, failed to make a significant impact with the team. The Belgian forward began his senior career at France’s Lille, attracting attention from major European clubs before eventually joining Chelsea.
Lack of professionalism cost Hazard a Barça move
Bojan Krkić, now Barcelona’s football coordinator, revealed on the program “Què T’hi Jugues” of Spanish station Cadena Ser that he advised against signing Hazard for the Catalan club during his time at Lille, citing concerns over his professionalism.
“I met him at the Under-17 European Championship, where my son was playing. Belgium reached the final, but Spain won it; Hazard played brilliantly throughout the tournament, except in the final. Later, he signed with Lille.
“I went to watch him against Montpellier. It was August, and during the warm-up, one player was missing. Everyone else was in short sleeves, but Hazard came out in a tracksuit. The team warmed up together; he went the other way. They stretched, he looked at the stands. He played well, but his commitment and attitude didn’t impress me.”
“Due to attitude and personality, with more details, I ruled him out”
“I saw him again three days later against Angers. He was on the bench, like other starters. Everyone was warming up, and he was just walking. The fitness coach told them to stretch, and he was watching the game. I marked him as ‘rejected’ in my report.
“These kinds of players, who are very talented, have shown me over the years that they don’t yield results, both when they were my teammates and when I scouted for Barça. My report read: top quality, technically and tactically; but due to attitude and personality, with more details, I ruled him out.”
Hazard’s attitude was one of the most criticised aspects of his time at Madrid, in addition to the bad luck he suffered with injuries. The former forward could have been a Barça player, but it seems the club ultimately ruled him out due to his lack of commitment and drive, despite the undeniable skill he possessed. Talk about sliding doors.