‘I chatted with Sir Alex Ferguson however snubbed Man Utd and joined rivals not that good’
The Premier League icon could have ended up at Old Trafford playing under legendary boss Sir Alex Ferguson had things turned out differently
Eden Hazard had all the top Premier League teams chasing him in the summer of 2012 – and says he could have ended up alongside Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.
And maybe Hazard would have done a belting job and still be at Old Trafford playing for Ruben Amorim’s strugglers, who managed to grab a sensational 2-2 draw at Anfield last Sunday.
Hazard, of course, eventually signed for Chelsea after deciding to end his time in France and leave Ligue 1 side Lille. But before putting pen to paper at Stamford Bridge, the playmaker talked to plenty of top-flight giants.
The midfielder, who turned 34 on January 7, is regarded as one of the best Belgian footballers of all time and after winning the French league and Coupe de France in 2010-11, was on the lookout for a new move.
And a switch to the Bridge was not on the cards at all thanks to their poor league form – until their 2012 Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich, thanks to Didier Drogba’s winning spot-kick in the penalty shootout, changed everything.
Speaking on former team-mate Jon Obi Mikel’s podcast, Hazard explained: “I had a chat with Sir Alex Ferguson, I spoke with Harry Redknapp, I went to Manchester to see the Manchester City training ground.
“I had a few options but not Chelsea because the last year I was at Lille, Chelsea was not that good in the league. When you [Mikel and Chelsea] won the Champions League, in the league you finished sixth.
“I knew I was leaving France to go to the Premier League but not Chelsea because I wanted to play Champions League.” That move came because you won the Champions League,” he added.
Mikel asked if he would have still joined the Blues, had they not been crowned European champions. Hazard hilariously replied: “Ah my friend, Chelsea was like far away. That’s why I say thank you to [Didier] Drogba.”
Even with Chelsea’s Champions League win, work still needed to be done to get the Belgium captain to pick them ahead of the whole host of other European clubs. Enter Drogba, Chelsea’s hero a month prior, who convinced Hazard over the phone.
Hazard previously explained: “Suddenly [Lille team-mate] Gervinho’s phone rang in the dressing room. It was Drogba on the line. He insisted that he tell me, ‘I need to talk to him’. Drogba said to me, ‘You have to come to Chelsea’.
“I knew I would easily adapt. London, close to home, not too far from Lille. [Kevin] De Bruyne had played there, Romelu [Lukaku] was around. There were enough French speakers. I knew I would play enough. I was only sad that he, Drogba, decided to leave.”
Hazard made 352 appearances for the west Londoners, scoring 110 goals as he became arguably the Premier League’s best player of his era.
He picked up the Premier League Player of the Season award for 2014/15 and Chelsea’s version of the prize on four occasions before moving to Real Madrid in 2019.
