On November 8, according to Spanish media outlet Marca, former Barcelona scout Bojan Krkic revealed in an interview that he had been following Eden Hazard since the player was 17 and playing for Lille. However, they ultimately did not sign him due to attitude issues on the field.
Krkic said, “I got to know Hazard at the U17 European Championship. Although Belgium’s youth team lost to Spain in the final, Hazard performed well throughout the tournament except for the final.”
“When he joined Lille, I kept an eye on him. I watched him play in a match between Lille and Montpellier. It was August, and both teams were warming up in hot weather. He played well, but in terms of dedication and attitude, I didn’t like what I saw.”
Regarding this, Krkic explained in his later player report: “Three days later, I went to watch Lille’s next game against Angers. He rested on the bench for a while, and then the other players went out to warm up. A teammate walked over from a distance to tell him to stretch and warm up with them, but Hazard remained seated on the bench, indifferent to the game. In my report, I wrote ‘abandoned.’ These very talented players, whether they were my teammates or when I was a scout for Barcelona, showed me results they didn’t deliver.”
