Transfer News: Lionel Messi wants Barcelona to sign top Manchester United target as Suarez replacement, Manchester United make shock David de Gea decision and more, 21 April 2019

Chelsea decide not to stand in the way of Eden Hazard and Real Madrid

Chelsea v Slavia Praha - UEFA Europa League Quarter Final : Second Leg

Chelsea have decided not to play hardball in Eden Hazard's case according to Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla. The Chelsea bosses reportedly want to avoid the occurrence of yet another situation identical to that of Thibaut Courtois' from last season and are ready to let things take its course despite having to serve a transfer ban.

Thibaut Courtois' exit from Chelsea was quite ugly, to say the least. He became a contract rebel, rejected all the extension offers that the Blues presented him with and even went AWOL in a bid to force his dream move to the Santiago Bernabeu. Chelsea ended up having to sell him on a cut-price deal.

Chelsea also run the risk of losing Hazard for free should they fail to sell him in the summer as the Belgian's current contract will run out in 2020.

About the author

Shambhu is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda who focuses on previews, listicles and news articles. An ardent Manchester United supporter since before his teenage years, he started following the Red Devils by age 10 watching MUTV on television. Shambhu is also a highly-revered rapper and a playback singer on Spotify, having a whopping 1 million monthly listeners.

For his articles, Shambhu believes in triple-checking every piece of information, relying on trusted websites like Transfermarkt and Opta, and staying away from speculative publications. He believes that his law degree helped him to be more articulate and meticulous with his content and one of his core strengths is seamlessly involving emotion in his write-ups owing to the love for the sport. For Sportskeeda, has done exclusive interviews with Spanish legends Gaizka Mendieta and Fernando Morientes so far, and his articles boast of a huge readership of close to 50 million.

Shambhu's favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and the Argentine attaining glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment. He believes only Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland could replicate Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's rivalry in the years to come. His favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson due to the Scot's unmatched longevity at the top.

Know More

Edited by Sripad