Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed the Gunners were “a few million” shy away from signing Eden Hazard before he signed for Chelsea.
The Blues won the Champions League in the 2011-12 season and the 24-year-old confirmed that he was joining the then European champions, snubbing the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City, who were all after his services.
The Belgium international has been a superstar for the west London club as he played a key role in helping Chelsea win the Premier League title last season.
When asked whether the north London club were interested in signing Hazard, Wenger said. “Yes.” He said “A few million!” when further question as to how close the deal was.
The Blues winger has been compared to the likes of Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo by Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho. However, Wenger suggested that there is no comparison between the Portuguese international and Hazard at this stage.
“It is all about opinions. You have to compare the numbers. I must say players like Messi and Ronaldo still score 50 goals and that is exceptional,” Arsenal manager said.
Despite that, the 65-year-old is aware of Hazard’s capabilities and said that he can decide the course of the game.
” He can decide the games and you put the top players in this kind of calibre when they can decide the games with something special. Hazard is in this category, now to reach the other two or three that are dominating world football at the moment I think it demands consistency which he is still to do,” Wenger explained.
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