Eden Hazard was an incredible player for Chelsea.
Indeed, Hazard was a joy to watch in his prime at Chelsea, and he achieved almost all there is to achieve at Stamford Bridge.
The winger won tons of trophies and individual accolades for the Blues. However, speaking to the Ballon d’Or’s TikTok page, he’s now expressed one regret about his time in west London.
Indeed, Eden Hazard says that his big regret with Chelsea was not being able to win the Champions League in 2019 as he believes he could’ve been a Ballon d’Or contender if he’d won Europe’s top prize that year.
Chelsea failed to qualify for the Champions League that season after finishing fifth the year prior under Antonio Conte.
Eden Hazard’s one regret at Chelsea
Hazard named his one regret at Chelsea.
The Belgian says he does regret not winning the Champions League in 2019, claiming that he thinks he was good enough, individually, at that time to be in Ballon d’Or contention.
Hazard could’ve been one of the best in the world, but he was never recognised as such in his pomp.
“I wasn’t decisive enough to be on the podium of the Ballon d’Or. My only regret with Chelsea could be in 2019 we won the Europa League, but if we won the Champions League, I could’ve been on the podium. Maybe I missed that little extra to win the Ballon d’Or. Not talent, not pure football, but scoring goals in the important matches,” Hazard said.
Eden Hazard’s Ballon d’Or finishes
Hazard was never on the podium for the Ballon d’Or, but he did come close on a few occasions.
Indeed, Hazard was shortlisted for this award five times during his career, but he never finished higher than eighth.
| Year | Eden Hazard’s Ballon d’Or finishes |
| 2013 | 22nd |
| 2015 | 8th |
| 2017 | 19th |
| 2018 | 8th |
| 2019 | 13th |
Hazard reckons his best shot at winning this award was back in 2019, but he feels he fell short due to the fact he didn’t win the Champions League.
Liverpool, of course, won the Champions League in 2019, and four Liverpool players were in the Ballon d’Or top 10 that year, so Hazard’s theory may well have some weight behind it.
Hazard’s talent was certainly at a Ballon d’Or level, but team trophies massively factor into who ultimately wins that award.
In another world, Hazard could’ve been a Ballon d’Or winner, but, sadly, things didn’t pan out that way for the Belgian.
