Poch could unearth Chelsea’s next Hazard in 18 y/o with a “street football style” – opinion
As you likely know, Eden Hazard recently retired from football at the mere age of 32 years old. A famed Chelsea player who once had the Premier League at his feet (with 86 goals in 245 games), it looked as if the Belgian would do the same to world football when he moved to Real Madrid in 2019.
He had the skill and ability it seemed, and the hype around his marquee £88.5m move to the Santiago Bernabeu even saw him the face of that year’s EA Sports FIFA video game.
However, with injuries and inconsistency plaguing Hazard amidst Spanish media frenzy – the winger just couldn’t replicate his time at Chelsea.
However, as one great departs – has another one arrived? Like the aforementioned FIFA experience, is there a Hazard regen waiting in the wings? Scouts and academy heads alike seem to think so.
Who is Diego Moreira?
Diego Moreira is a 19-year-old Belgian-born winger who represents Portugal’s U21s. Currently, he’s on loan at Olympique Lyonnais after leaving Benfica for Chelsea when his contract in the Portuguese capital expired.
Admittedly, the hype in Portugal is only quietly starting to arrive in west London.
Interestingly, Moreira comes from a football-rich family. Diego is the son of former Guinea Bissau midfielder Almami Moreira.
Moreira senior was plying his trade at Standard Liege when his son was born, and the club holds further importance as junior followed through the ranks before moving to Benfica in 2020. Also, on his mother’s side – Diego’s grandfather Helmut Graf played for the club from 1976-82.
How does Diego Moreira compare to Eden Hazard?
Belgian connection aside, Moreira looks to be cut from the same cloth as Hazard. A left-footed winger, who possesses dexterity either side of the attacking line – Moreira is a direct and explosive player. What has connected both Hazard and Moreira, is this likelihood to play football as a pure, outpouring of entertainment – their playing styles as alive and breathing as they are.
Where Chelsea’s media gushed on Hazard’s retirement…
“The slightest of shifts forward from those in seats. The small intakes of breath in anticipation. The involuntary noises of excitement.
All became signs of one thing inside Stamford Bridge: Eden Hazard was in possession of the football. Such wonderment was deserved. Such reverence warranted. Hazard was a showman on the pitch. A footballing virtuoso. He did things others could not imagine. He scored goals others could only dream of.”
Benfica B coach, Luis Castro, proudly told Maisfutebol about Chelsea’s new signing and how he even has this defensive tenacity too:
“He has improved a lot. He has this street football style, but it is increasingly productive.
He is managing to reconcile being entertaining, because he brings spectacle to the game, with better statistics. And he has a very particular characteristic, which is not normal for a player of his talents, which is the defensive component. He’s a defensive animal and I don’t see many wingers worldwide with Diego Moreira’s defensive commitment.”
Although intriguingly also compared to the fellow Portuguese-naturalised Nani, with the youngster said to have Hazard as a particular idol – it makes you think if he could ever switch allegiances to the country of his birth.