Hazard announces retirement at age 32 – 10/10/2023 – Sport

Midfielder Eden Hazard, without a club since leaving Real Madrid in June, announced his retirement from football at the age of 32, this Tuesday (10), with a message on Instagram.

Leader of Belgium’s golden generation, the athlete placed third in the 2018 World Cup in Russia – when they eliminated Brazil in the quarterfinals.

“You need to know how to listen and stop at the right moment. After a 16-year career and more than 700 games played, I decided to end my career as a professional football player,” said the attacking midfielder, who exploded at Lille and shone at Chelsea before of his erated spell at Real Madrid.

At Chelsea, between 2012 and 2019, the Belgian midfielder became one of the best players in the world, winning a collection of trophies, including two editions of the Premier League and two of the Europa League.

With Real Madrid, he was unable to reach that level, but he expanded his list of titles, especially with the 2022 Champions League.

In the national team, Hazard was the captain of the team that almost defeated France, who ended up being world champions in 2018, in the semifinals.

It was the “golden generation” of Belgian football, led by Spanish coach Roberto Martínez. Hazard was accompanied, among others, by Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois and Romelu Lukaku.

Already in decline, the Red Devils did not progress past the group stage at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

“I managed to make my dream come true, I played and had fun on fields around the world. During my career, I was lucky enough to meet great managers, coaches and teammates. Thank you all for the great moments, I will miss you,” he said in this Tuesday.

“Finally, a big thank you to you, my fans, who have followed me throughout these years and encouraged me wherever I have played,” he concluded.