Eden Hazard to leave Real Madrid after four years

Belgium’s Eden Hazard will leave Real Madrid at the end of this month, the club confirmed in a press release on Saturday evening.

A mutual agreement has been found to end the player's contract, which runs until the middle of next year. Sunday will see the final match of the season, at home to Athletic Bilbao.

Real announced the departure in a short announcement. “Real Madrid Football Club and Eden Hazard have reached an agreement whereby the player will leave the club as of 30 June 2023,” it said. “Real Madrid would like to express our affection to Eden Hazard and we wish him and his family the best of luck for the next stage of his career.”

The news had been leaked earlier in the day to sports site The Athletic, who suggested that retirement was also a possibility. However, that decision has not yet been made. The former captain of the Red Devils announced his retirement from international football after early elimination at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Hazard signed for Real in the summer of 2019 for 115 million euros, but never reached the same levels he had enjoyed at Chelsea. In four seasons with Real, he played 76 games, scoring seven goals. During his time at the club he won the European Cup, Club World Cup, European Super Cup, two LaLiga titles, the Copa del Rey and two Spanish Super Cups.

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