Since joining Real Madrid in 2019 from Chelsea, Eden Hazard’s career has undergone a downward spiral. He is a shadow of the player that he was at Stamford Bridge and at this rate, Madrid will just be hoping to offload him as soon as possible and cut their losses.
Could a return to Chelsea for Hazard be possible? More strange things have happened in football but given that he is now 30, it does not seem likely given that the club is historically hesitant to sign players over 30.
The following are two players whose careers also went downhill after joining Madrid.
Kaka
The 2007 Ballon d’Or winner joined Los Blancos in the summer of 2009 at a time in which he was regarded as arguably the world’s best player. In the heyday of his career which was his first spell with AC Milan between 2003-2009, Kaka famously played a starring role in helping Milan to win the Champions League and Serie A.
He was a shadow of the player that he was at the Santiago Bernabeu over four years and he ended up returning to Milan in 2013 after his spell with Madrid ended. Whilst his second spell with Milan was decent, he failed to emulate the kind of form which saw him win the Ballon d’Or.
Michael Owen
The 2001 Ballon d’Or winner betrayed Liverpool fans for the first time by pushing for a transfer to Real Madrid in 2004 when he was regarded as arguably the best striker in the world.
Owen failed to settle in Spain and failed to find the back of the net on a regular basis in his one season in Spain, scoring 13 goals from 36 La Liga games.
After one season in Spain, he returned to England with Newcastle United in 2005. Injuries ended up curtailing Owen’s ability to showcase the type of form that he displayed en route to winning the Ballon D’Or as a youngster.
