Why I Declined Ronaldo’s Shirt at Real Madrid – Hazard

Former Real Madrid forward Eden Hazard revealed that he declined Cristiano Ronaldo’s shirt number because he wanted to create his own identity at the club.

Speaking on the club’s website, Hazard said he had not joined Real Madrid to replace the Portuguese international.

He added that the expectation to inherit the No. 7 jersey was imposed by the media, not by himself.

“Succeeding Cristiano at Real Madrid wasn’t a burden because, in my opinion, I wasn’t there to replace him. It’s the media who say, ‘he’s going to replace Ronaldo,’” Hazard explained.

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“I think I have a completely different style of play than him. I couldn’t score 60 or 70 goals a year. In fact, throughout my entire career, I barely scored that many.”

“I went there to play like Eden, not to replace Ronaldo. But, as often happens, things didn’t go well. I didn’t want number 7. I wanted Luka Modric’s number 10. I thought he was going to say, ‘okay, take it,’ but he didn’t give it to me.”

The 34‑year‑old, who retired from football in October 2023, never met expectations in Spain and is widely regarded as one of the club’s most costly signings in recent history.