Eden Hazard: Chelsea legend becomes 26th person to be inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame

The selection was announced on Wednesday, making Hazard the 26th player to receive the league’s highest individual honor.

Joining the Blues in 2012, Hazard played a key role in helping Stamford Bridge win six major trophies in seven years, including two Premier League titles in 2014/15 and 2016/17.

In the Premier League, Hazard played 245 games, scoring 85 goals and providing 54 assists.

Although he ranks 51st on the Premier League’s all-time goalscoring list, the former Belgium international is best known for his outstanding dribbling ability, creativity and flair, which has made him one of the league’s most exciting players over the years.

His sensational solo goal in the 3-1 home win against Arsenal, in which he ran from the halfway line and slotted the ball past David Ospina from close range, goes down as one of his finest moments in a Chelsea shirt as the club came close to achieving their fifth and most recent success in the Premier League.

Eden Hazard Premier League Hall of Fame

Image credit: Getty Images

Not only did he bring Chelsea the title, he also played a key role in Leicester City’s incredible title win in 2016, one of the most iconic moments in Premier League history. He scored the second goal in a 2-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur with a brilliant shot on goal, giving the Foxes a fairy-tale first Premier League title.

Hazard scored a welcome nine goals and provided 11 assists in his debut season for the team, who were the reigning UEFA Champions League winners under Roberto Di Matteo and Rafa Benitez in 2012-13.

The following season, he scored 14 goals and was named PFA Young Player of the Year.

He matched this figure in the 2014-15 season, winning his first Premier League title, as well as providing nine assists and winning the PFA Player of the Year award.

Hazard had a disappointing 2015/16 campaign, scoring just four league goals, but made a spectacular comeback the following season with his highest score ever (16) as Chelsea won the league title under Antonio Conte in Italy’s infamous 3-4-3 system.

However, his best season at Chelsea was his last, when he scored 16 goals and provided 15 assists before moving to Real Madrid for £130 million.

As well as excelling in the Premier League for Chelsea, Hazard also won the UEFA Europa League, FA Cup and League Cup twice during his time in west London.

Last week, former Manchester United captain Gary Neville was inducted into the Hall of Fame, and he and Hazard were selected as this year’s nominees by the 24 existing Hall of Fame members.

The Hall of Fame was established in 2021 to honor the league’s most iconic players and managers since its inception in 1992.

premier league hall of fame

The 26 people inducted into the Hall of Fame are as follows:

Alan Shearer (2021) Thierry Henry (2021) Eric Cantona (2021) David Beckham (2021) Dennis Bergkamp (2021) Frank Lampard (2021) Steven Gerrard (2021) Roy Keane (2021) Patrick Vieira (2022) Wayne Rooney (2022) Sergio Aguero (2022) Didier Drogba (2022) Vincent Kompany (2022) Paul Scholes (2022) Ian Wright (2022) Peter Schmeichel (2022) Sir Alex Ferguson (2023) Arsene Wenger (2023) Rio Ferdinand (2023) Petr Cech (2023) Tony Adams (2023) Ashley Cole (2024) Andrew Cole (2024) John Terry (2024) Gary Neville (2025) Eden Hazard (2025)

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