Real Madrid announced on Friday that Chelsea's Eden Hazard would be completing a summer move to the Santiago Bernabéu, ending a seven-year spell in west London in a deal reported to be worth up to £130m.
The Belgium international has been at the centre of transfer speculation for most of the last year as he prepared to enter the final year of his contract at Stamford Bridge.
But after Hazard's future was cleared up and his dream move to Real Madrid announced, the 28-year-old released a heartfelt statement to the Chelsea fanbase insisting that leaving has been the "biggest and toughest decision" he's made in his career.
"Leaving Chelsea is the biggest and toughest decision in my career to date," Hazard wrote on his official Facebook page.
"Now it’s in the open I would like to put on record one thing was always clear to me, I have loved every moment at Chelsea and not once did I ever consider, nor would I have left for any other Club.
"Those who know me understand it is not me to list what I have won, all I can say is each and every award both as a team and as an individual have been incredible.
"One day I will be able to sit down over a beer and talk about or laugh with pride about my missed penalty that set up my header to win the league against [Crystal] Palace, or those goals against Tottenham, Arsenal or Liverpool.
"We’ve won the FA Cup, League Cups, Europa Leagues and Premier Leagues all as a family.
"Chelsea and especially Chelsea fans will always be special to me and next season I will look for your results first. I hope that we are drawn against each other in the Champions League next season and every season so we can meet again."
Hazard's arrival in the Spanish capital makes him Real Madrid's fourth signing of the summer transfer window already.
Having agreed a deal for Rodrygo some time ago, both Porto defender Éder Militão and Eintracht Frankfurt's Luka Jović have also signed on the dotted line ahead of the new season.
Source : 90min