Eden Hazard: ‘Pure Football’ Lover Snubs Erling Haaland, Names Stars He Enjoys Watching

Eden Hazard: ‘Pure Football’ Lover Snubs Erling Haaland, Names Stars He Enjoys Watching

Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe
February 20, 2024 at 7:07 AM
In this article:
Eden Hazard logo
E.Hazard
-FBelgium logo
Erling Braut Haaland logo
E.Haaland
Manchester City logoFNorway logo
Kevin De Bruyne logo
K. D. Bruyne
Manchester City logoMBelgium logo
Jude Bellingham logo
J.Bellingham
Real Madrid logoMEngland logo
Jack Grealish logo
J.Grealish
Manchester City logoMEngland logo
Bernardo Silva logo
B. Silva
Manchester City logoMPortugal logo
Real Madrid logo
Real Madrid
Spain
37
Chelsea logo
Chelsea
England
61
Manchester City logo
Manchester City
England
26
  • Eden Hazard has named the current football stars he enjoys watching
  • He named 3 of Manchester City's stars while including Jude Bellingham
  • However, the ex-Chelsea forward left Erling Haaland from his exclusive list

Eden Hazard's fixation on the concept of 'pure football' remains a hot topic, with his recent comments shedding light on the type of players he admires.

Just a few weeks ago, the retired Belgian footballer boldly stated that only Lionel Messi surpassed him in terms of what he described as 'pure football.'

Eden Hazard, Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham, pure football
Eden Hazard appears not to be a fan of Manchester City's prolific striker Erling Haaland. Photos by Visionhaus and Quality Sport Images.
Source: Getty Images

Hazard's love for 'pure football'

By making this assertion, he positioned himself ahead of Messi's long-standing rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, although he acknowledged Ronaldo's unparalleled goal-scoring prowess by labelling him as the greatest goal-scorer in history.

While opinions on the 33-year-old's statement vary, Hazard, known for his technical approach to the game and mesmerising dribbling ability on the ball, has now revealed some of the current players he finds captivating.

Hazard snubs Haaland, names stars he enjoys watching

The Belgian seems to favour players with exceptional technical skills, those who exhibit creativity and flair beyond merely scoring goals.

It's no surprise that he omitted Erling Haaland, the Manchester City striker known for his remarkable goal-scoring ability but often criticised for lacking finesse in his gameplay.

Instead, Hazard highlighted three of Haaland's teammates at the Etihad, along with one rising star predicted to make a significant impact in the future: Jude Bellingham, who has been making waves in La Liga since his move from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid.

"I don't watch football for Erling Haaland, but for players like Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, Jude Bellingham, Jack Grealish," he remarked on Mikel Obi's podcast as quoted by Football Tweet.

Although Haaland may not be widely recognised for his finesse, the Norwegian striker garners immense praise for his extraordinary goal-scoring prowess.

His remarkable achievement of 52 goals in 53 games for the Citizens last season, per Transfermarkt, played a pivotal role in inspiring them to a historic treble, which notably included clinching the elusive Champions League title.

Hazard names 'most talented' footballer who played with

In a Hazard-related story, Sports Brief reported that the ex-Chelsea star has identified the most talented teammate he has played with over the course of his senior career, and it's not any of the renowned names like Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, Luka Modric, or Kevin De Bruyne.

Despite sharing the field with numerous top footballers during his stints at Lille, Chelsea, and Real Madrid, Hazard has made an unexpected choice for his most talented teammate.

He named Gael Kakuta as the best young talent he has ever played with, despite the former France youth international experiencing a disappointing spell with the Blues.

Authors
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe photo
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe is a Ligue 1, Bundesliga, and La Liga editor with five-year experience. He previously worked with Sports Corna and 360SportsGH.
Tags
World