Chelsea have reaped a windfall from Eden Hazard’s move to Real Madrid – despite the Belgian star retiring last year.
When Real Madrid signed Hazard from Chelsea in 2019, a whopping £130m package was agreed, although a significant portion of that was based on add-ons.
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And the Blues have just raised a further £5million after Real Madrid fulfilled a clause in the original contract by reaching the Champions League final, according to The Telegraph.
And that despite Hazard retiring seven months ago.
Around £40m of the original £130m fee relies on performance-based add-ons, with the majority of this being paid in full.
Hazard agreed to terminate his contract with Real last summer before announcing his retirement in October.
Nonetheless, Madrid’s contract with Chelsea remains valid and will give the Blues a nice little boost in their battle to comply with the Premier League’s winning and sustainability rules.
Real Madrid spent £88m on Hazard in 2019, but he failed to make much of an impression at the Bernabeu and played just 54 times in LaLiga in his four seasons.
He actually managed to take home a Champions League medal in 2022 after Los Blancos beat Liverpool in the final, which also gave Chelsea a cash win.
But the final payment came as Real reached another final, this time at Wembley, where they face Borussia Dortmund after knocking out Bayern Munich and Manchester City.
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Chelsea, on the other hand, will definitely feel like they had the best years of Hazard, who played for the club for seven years.
During his time at Stamford Bridge, the Belgian played 352 games for the club, scoring 110 goals.
He won two Premier League titles, two Europa League trophies, an FA Cup and a Carabao Cup.
Injuries marred his time at Real Madrid, where he signed after telling Chelsea they were his dream club.
After leaving the Spanish capital last summer, he received several offers from clubs, but none convinced him.
This led to him deciding to retire at the age of 32 after playing in several charity games.
“You have to listen to yourself and say stop at the right time,” he said when he retired in October.
“I was able to make my dream come true, I played on many courses around the world and had fun. Thank you everyone for this great time, I will miss you all.”