Kroos hints Hazard is ruining his career

Midfielder Toni Kroos used Eden Hazard - his teammate who just terminated his contract with Real early and is planning to retire - to warn new signing Jude Bellingham.

"We had another player who came for a lot of money and basically ruined his career. That deal cost a lot of money, and I think people will say it was not a good transfer. But let's be positive," Kroos said on his personal podcast Einfach mal Luppen on June 14.

According to British newspaper Sportmail , Kroos' statement aimed at Hazard was a warning to Bellingham - the midfielder confirmed to join Real on the same day.

Kroos and Hazard in a training session with Real Madrid. Photo: EFE — Kroos and Hazard in a training session with Real Madrid. Photo: *EFE*

Since joining Real in 2019 for $136 million, Hazard has suffered a devastating injury and has struggled with weight gain. The Belgian winger has never played more than 23 games for the Madrid club in a season and has been relegated to the B team several times.

In total, Hazard has missed 78 games due to injury over the past four years, more than he has played (76), and has scored just seven goals. On June 3, Real announced that they had reached an agreement to terminate Hazard's contract a year early, and that he was considering retirement. The 32-year-old star also retired from the national team after Belgium were eliminated in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup.

On June 14, Real announced that they had reached an agreement with Dortmund to transfer Bellingham. According to the British newspaper Sportmail , the Bernabeu will pay a transfer fee of 110 million USD plus 32 million USD in additional fees depending on the 19-year-old midfielder's performance. Another former club of Bellingham, Birmingham City, will receive 15% of the transfer fee from Dortmund.

Bellingham will be presented by Real at the Bernabeu today, June 15. Photo: Twitter / @RMadrid_actu — Bellingham will be presented by Real at the Bernabeu today, June 15. Photo: *Twitter / @RMadrid_actu*

While Kroos issued a warning, Vinicius welcomed his new teammate with a positive message on social media: "Welcome to the best team in the world, Bellingham".

Bellingham later paid tribute to Dortmund, saying he cherished the past three years. He stressed that it was an honor to play for Dortmund, and thanked the German club for the opportunity, his teammates, the coaching staff, the board and all the staff. "I joined Dortmund as a 17-year-old boy and left as a man. It's all part of a great development as a person and a player," he wrote, wishing Dortmund the best.

Bellingham joined Birmingham City when he was just under eight years old, and became the club's youngest ever first-team player when he made his debut in September 2019, aged 16 years and 38 days. He scored four goals in 44 appearances in 2019-20, before joining Dortmund for $32.7 million in the summer of 2020, becoming the most expensive 17-year-old in history. In total, he scored 24 goals in 132 appearances for the Bundesliga club, winning the 2020-21 German Cup and finishing runners-up in the 2022-23 Bundesliga.

Bellingham has represented England at U15, U16, U17 and U21 levels. Bellingham is the youngest player to play at Euro 2021 at 17 years and 349 days, replacing captain Harry Kane in the opening match of Euro 2021 against Croatia. At the 2022 World Cup, Bellingham has become a key player alongside Declan Rice, contributing a goal and an assist.

According to Transfermarkt , Bellingham is currently the fourth most expensive player in the world with 130 million USD, only behind Vinicius ($162 million), Erling Haaland ($185 million) and Kylian Mbappe ($195 million).

Hong Duy

Source link