SUMMARY
- Eden Hazards lifestyle and habits led to a lot of injuries.
- Cristiano Ronaldo, known for his epic training routine and extreme discipline keeps him fit even at the age of 38.
Eden Hazard is one of his generation’s most gifted soccer players. The Belgian attacker shone with confidence and flair on the pitch. Every team on the planet was petrified of the 33-year-old and devised elaborate plans to contain the Belgian.
Eden Hazard combined his soccer skills with immaculate strength on the ball to belittle some of the world’s best defenses.
Mesmerising from Eden Hazard 💫#GoalOfTheDay pic.twitter.com/uugDq8Pd4D
— Premier League (@premierleague) January 5, 2020
However, the FIFA World Cup 2018 semi-finalist failed to maintain the balance between his soccer skills and fitness in the later part of his career. A lot of injury problems surface for Eden whose lifestyle habits were questioned. The fans accused of the Belgian of not having the professionalism of a soccer player. Eden Hazard, too post-retirement has agreed to having a very laidback lifestyle.
Eden Hazard believes he could never match the level of Cristiano Ronaldo
Fans have known Cristiano Ronaldo for having an epic training routine. The Portuguese takes excellent care of his body and is still going strong at 38. Much of the credit for Cristiano’s fitness goes to the way he trains. The former Real Madrid player pays equal attention to both training and recovery and this has kept him largely away from injuries.
However, Eden Hazard is pretty terrified of such a rigorous training schedule. He rather wants to enjoy life after training, separating his professional and personal life. He said, “No. It wouldn’t have been me. After training, soaking in the cold bath for an hour, no. Leave me alone, with my friends, we go home, play cards, have a beer. I play for two hours with my friends.”
🚨Eden Hazard:
Would have you liked to have Cristiano’s mentality?”
“No. It wouldn’t have been me. After training, soaking in the cold bath for an hour, no. Leave me alone, with my friends, we go home, play cards, have a beer. I play for two hours with my friends. Children in… pic.twitter.com/OcsLMh5TFA
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) February 3, 2024
The 2021/22 UEFA Champions League winner believes that every player has a different way of recovering. While Cristiano likes to have a cold bath after training sessions, Eden Hazard likes spending time with his children in the garden to recover after training sessions.
He also believed that he could not function properly if he trained like the Al-Nassr player. Eden said, ” If I had been like Cristiano, I would have been burned out.” The former Chelsea player wanted to strike a balance between his family and his love for soccer.
The Belgian soccer player announced his retirement in 2023 after a long run of injuries
The two-time Premier League winner with Chelsea left Stamford Bridge to join Spanish giants Real Madrid in the summer of 2019. Eden Hazard was at the time on the top of his game and was an integral part of the Chelsea squad that had won the 2018/19 UEFA Europa League. ‘Los Blancos’ too were very happy with the signing as they considered him the perfect replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo who had left for Juventus a season prior.
But the exact opposite happened, Eden Hazard had a horrible time at Real Madrid. The Belgian could only score 7 goals in 76 appearances across 4 seasons in the Spanish capital. A frustrated Real Madrid went for his contract termination on June 3, 2023.
🚨 Official: Eden Hazard leaves Real Madrid! Contract terminated by mutual agreement.
“Real Madrid C. F. and Eden Hazard have reached an agreement by which the player is disassociated from the club as of June 30, 2023”, club announces. #Hazard pic.twitter.com/0moZaBUQzK
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 3, 2023
Eden Hazard was then linked with a host of clubs from the Saudi Pro League, but the Belgian shockingly announced his retirement from soccer in October 2023. He wrote, “You must listen to yourself and say stop at the right time. After 16 years and more than 700 matches played, I have decided to end my career as a professional footballer.”
Even his retirement message had an essence of his struggles with his injuries. Eden’s fitness issues were so poor that in four years at Real Madrid, the former Chelsea talisman could only manage to play the full 90 minutes only four times.
His body had essentially given up on the Belgian, and therefore, Eden Hazard decided to retire altogether. The Belgian thanked everyone: his coaches, clubs, friends, family, fans, etc. for supporting him throughout his soccer career.
