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Belgian international Eden Hazard has the talent and personality to succeed at Real Madrid if he chooses to leave Chelsea for the La Liga giants, his former manager Jose Mourinho has said.
Hazard, who will become a free agent in June 2020, said last year it was his dream to play for 13-times European champions Real, and British media have since reported that talks with Chelsea over a contract extension have been put on hold.
Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri said last month that Hazard was free to leave the Premier League club if the 28-year-old had his heart set on a move.
"Does he have the talent to play for Real Madrid? He does," former Real boss Mourinho, who managed Hazard at Chelsea from 2013 to 2015, told sports streaming service DAZN Espana.
"Does he have the personality to put on a 'super-heavy' shirt and play in front of the fans at the Bernabeu? Yes, he has the personality.
Show all 41 Chelsea loanees Josimar Quintero Barcelona youth product Quintero made the switch to Chelsea but has since been loaned to the third tier of Spanish football. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Kenneth Omeruo Currently on loan at Leganes with an option to buy, Omeruo is unlikely to return having played 20 times for the Spanish club this season. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Josh Grant Contracted with Chelsea until the end of this season and on loan at Yeovil, it seems improbable that the 20-year-old will fight for a first team spot soon. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Victorien Angban Joining Chelsea in 2015, Angban has been sent on a number of loans around Europe. He is currently with Metz in the French second division with an option to buy that seems likely to be activated. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Jared Thompson Currently on loan at Warrenpoint Town in Northern Ireland, the 20-year-old’s contract runs out at the end of the season. 1/10
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Signed from Brazilian Serie A, promising young midfielder Nathan never got going at Chelsea and has since been loaned back to Brazil with Atletico Mineiro. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Fankaty Dabo A second season on loan in The Netherlands for Dabo suggests that he may not return to the Chelsea matchday squad. His contract expires at the end of this season. 1/10
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Chelsea loanees Lucas Piazon Now in Serie A with Chievo, Piazon’s career at Chelsea has stalled. The 25-year-old joined at the end of the January window with an option to buy. 2/10
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Chelsea loanees Kylian Hazard Brother of Eden and Thorgan, Kylian Hazard has not made as big an impact as his brothers. Now 23, he is having a good spell at Belgian Pro League side Cercle Bruges, although a Chelsea comeback is not likely. 2/10
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Chelsea loanees Danilo Pantic Named in the Serbian league’s team of the season for performances at Partizan Belgrade, Pantic returned for another year and has an option to buy in his loan contract. 2/10
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Veteran Portuguese goalkeeper Eduardo is currently with Chelsea’s feeder club Vitesse. The 36-year-old is unlikely to play for the Blues again and has only appeared once for the U-23s since joining. 2/10
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Debuting for the first team in 2016/17, where he made six appearances, Aina has eventually made his way to Torino on loan with an option to buy. He has played 23 times for Torino and reports suggest he will make the switch to Serie A permanent. 3/10
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Chelsea loanees Michael Hector Contracted until 2020 and currently at Sheffield Wednesday, Hector is unlikely to break back into the Chelsea side but has played consistently at all loan spells. 3/10
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Chelsea loanees Mario Pasalic Appearing in pre-season with the Blues was as close as he got to Cheslea’s first team this season and is now on loan and in decent form at Atalanta with an option to buy. 3/10
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Chelsea loanees Jacob Maddox Aged 20, Maddox is on his first loan from Chelsea at Cheltenham Town where he is a regular. 3/10
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Chelsea loanees Matt Miazga Miazga joined Chelsea in 2016 from New York Red Bulls and is contracted until 2022. He spent half of this season at Nantes and recently joined Reading where he has played five times. The 23-year-old could still make his mark at Chelsea. 4/10
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On loan at Hull City, the right-back is a regular first team player, but at 25-years-old seems unlikely to return to the Chelsea matchday squad. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Izzy Brown Spending much of the season injured with a cruciate ligament rupture and a hamstring problem, Izzy Brown’s likelihood of finding a first team squad place at Chelsea has dropped dramatically since his injury-stricken spell at Leeds. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Dujon Sterling Young prospect Dujon Sterling has accumulated five assists in 27 games for League One Coventry this campaign and is contracted with Chelsea until 2023. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Bradley Collins A second loan spell has seen Collins earn a regular place at Burton Albion. The keeper played in the Carabao Cup semi-final against Manchester City. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Tomas Kalas Kalas, 25, played over 30 games in Fulham’s promotion season but has found himself back in the Championship with in-form Bristol City. Kalas has been integral in the club’s 13 and counting unbeaten league run. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Kasey Palmer Frequently loaned around the Championship, Palmer is now at Bristol City. Despite being only 22-years-old, returning to the Chelsea matchday squad looks distant. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Nathan Baxter Winning numerous Player of the Year awards on loan at non-league Woking, the 20-year-old earned a renewed two-and-a-half year contract with Chelsea and is now with Yeovil Town until the end of the season. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Lewis Baker Loaned to Leeds this season where he struggled to hold down a first team spot, making only two league starts, Baker made the switch to Reading and has gathered more game time. However, this spell in his career has made a first team Chelsea place less likely. 4/10
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Chelsea loanees Charly Musonda Musonda made seven first team appearances before a loan move to Celtic. The 22-year-old two-footed winger was promising but has since faded resulting in a loan move to Vitesse. 5/10
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Chelsea loanees Baba Rahman After a cruciate ligament injury, Baba was loaned to Schalke but only appeared four times before his loan was cut short. He is now at Stade Reims in Ligue 1. 5/10
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Chelsea loanees Tiemoue Bakayoko First team regular in 2017-18, Bakayoko was not in Maurizio Sarri’s plans. He was loaned to AC Milan with an option to buy that is likely to be activated should Milan secure Champions League football. 5/10
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Chelsea loanees Alvaro Morata The Spanish striker struggled for form in England and has moved to Atletico Madrid with an option to buy that will likely be exercised. 5/10
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Chelsea loanees Jake Clarke-Salter Only 21, Clarke-Salter has been around the first team before making several first team appearances and will hope he can return. He is currently another youth product at Vitesse. 5/10
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Chelsea loanees Karlo Ziger Promising 17-year-old Croatian keeper Ziger is contracted until 2021. He is on loan at non-league Sutton United but has not featured for the first team. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Jay Dasilva England U-21 international Jay Dasilva is currently at Bristol City until the end of the season. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Victor Moses Moses will be 29 when he returns from Fenerbahce on loan and is therefore likely to be moved on by the club but could return as wing-back cover. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Reece James An important member of Wigan Athletic’s defence this season, he will hope to help the Latics avoid relegation. The 19-year-old has a future with Chelsea having signed until 2022. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Trevoh Chalobah Younger brother of Nathaniel Chalobah is still one for the future. The 19-year-old defender is on loan at rock-bottom Championship side Ipswich and has played 33 times so far this season. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Fikayo Tomori Tomori has had a good season at Derby County with Frank Lampard, becoming popular with Rams fans. The 21-year-old may be able to push for a squad place when he returns in summer. 6/10
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Brazilian winger Kenedy is well liked at Newcastle where he has been for over a season. The 23-year-old is talented and could complete a return to Chelsea’s matchday squad at the end of his loan. 6/10
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Chelsea loanees Michy Batshuayi A deadline day loan move to Crystal Palace was confirmed after Everton could not strike a permanent deal for Batshuayi. The Belgian’s form at Palace will decide his likelihood of returning to the first team squad. 7/10
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Chelsea loanees Kurt Zouma A regular for Everton, Zouma has had a strong season on Merseyside and the defender contracted until 2023 could well return to Chelsea’s matchday squad. 7/10
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Chelsea loanees Mason Mount One of the most likely players to return to the Chelsea squad is Mason Mount. He has impressed at Derby County and looks a class above the Championship. You would expect him to return to the Blues in the summer. 8/10
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Chelsea loanees Tammy Abraham A whopping 20 goals already this season for Tammy Abraham at Aston Villa indicates that the 21-year-old could be in for a return to the Blues. Too prolific for the second-tier, Abraham should make the step up. 9/10
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Chelsea loanees Christian Pulisic Yet to play a game for Chelsea having been loaned back to Borussia Dortmund, new signing Pulisic will move straight into the first team squad for the 2019/20 season. 10/10
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"Regarding Eden's ambitions... be it playing for Chelsea his whole life or playing for a giant like Real Madrid, I can't say, because I haven't spoken to him for a long time."
Mourinho, who has been working as a television pundit and soccer show host since being sacked as Manchester United manager in December, also said he wanted to return to football management before the start of next season.
"In this short phase of my life, which I hope is only until June, I'm more concerned about what others would do than what I would do," he added.
Reuters
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