Eden Hazard had some real highs and lows under Jose Mourinho at Chelsea.
In the 2014/15 season, Hazard and Mourinho tasted Premier League success together. However, less than a year later, the Special One was sacked.
During the 2015/16 campaign, Hazard really struggled under Mourinho and failed to replicate the form he showed the previous term.
Be honest: If Estevao avoids injuries, is he actually destined to be GREATER than Eden Hazard?
Eden Hazard on Estevao Willian
Photo by Franco Romano/NurPhoto via Getty Images
That was not the only difficult period he had while Mourinho was at Stamford Bridge, though.
Jose Mourinho the head coach / manager of Chelsea speaks to Eden Hazard
Photo by AMA/Corbis via Getty Images
Eden Hazard had to apologise to Jose Mourinho before then being dropped
In his first season working with Mourinho, Hazard returned to France to watch former club Lille.
However, Hazard lost his passport during that trip and ended up missing a Chelsea training session. It came with consequences, the retired winger has revealed.
In an interview with The Guardian, Hazard said: “I remember once, during the first year Mourinho arrived, I went to Lille to watch a game and lost my passport on the way back. I wasn’t allowed back into England and missed training. I returned around 2pm. When the session was over, I had to apologise to him. It was a really bad moment for me.
“The next week, he pulled me out of the team and said it was my fault, but by the weekend I was back playing and it went well.”
Despite that disappointing final campaign under Mourinho, the Portuguese still got a lot out of Hazard overall. He did not get as much as Maurizio Sarri did, though.
Who had the better individual season? 🔥
Eden Hazard's 2018/19 stats and Cole Palmer's 2023/24 stats at Chelsea
Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images/Clive Rose
Hazard scored one hat-trick under Sarri and had his best individual season in England under the Italian.
Michy Batshuayi of Belgium celebrates scoring a goal with team mates Eden Hazard and Mousa Dembele
Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Hazard has also discussed playing alongside someone who he feels was really underappreciated during his career.
The Belgian was asked to name the most underrated player he has lined up alongside, and Chelsea fans will not like his answer.
“I always thought Mousa Dembele was one of the best midfielders of that generation,” Hazard said. “People didn’t talk about him much because he didn’t score goals, but the fans in the Premier League know he was a top, top player.”
Dembele, of course, played for Chelsea’s London rivals Tottenham Hotspur and was involved in some fiery games between the two sides.
Both Hazard and Dembele were part of Belgium’s golden generation and came third in the 2018 World Cup.
While Hazard was never able to win anything with his country, he won the biggest honours at Chelsea and Real Madrid. The 35-year-old got his hands on two Premier League titles with the Blues before eventually claiming the Champions League trophy at Real Madrid.
However, after injuries and a lack of goals, his time at the Santiago Bernabeu will not be deemed as a success.
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox