The Salah vs Hazard argument on who is better, just began recently after Eden Hazard announced his retirement from professional football.
Their footballing talents, accompanied by hard work, have led them to the very top and made them two of the best wingers in their generation but which of them have proven to be the better footballer individually?
On the 10th of October 2023, Eden Hazard announced his retirement from football after being let off by Real Madrid following four unsuccessful seasons.
As football fans worldwide wished him well on his retirement, the debate on who is better between the Belgian and Mohamed Salah ensued.
In this article, we shall compare the stats and achievements of, arguably, the two best wingers in the Premier League in the last decade.
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Mohamed Salah Stats
Mohamed Salah is a 31-year-old Egyptian who plays majorly as a right winger for English side Liverpool.
Typically known for his pace, finishing skills, goalscoring prowess and dribbling skills, Salah is known to be one of the best wingers in Europe today and among the greatest African players of all time.
Mo Salah began his senior professional career with Egyptian side Al Mokawloon in 2010 before moving to Europe in 2012 to play for Basel. He signed for Chelsea in 2014, went on loan to Fiorentina and Roma in 2015 but was signed permanently by Roma in 2016 before making his big move to Liverpool in 2017.
His stats, records and achievements are shown in the table below.
| Clubs | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Trophies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Mokawloon | 44 | 12 | 6 | – |
| Basel | 79 | 20 | 17 | 2 |
| Chelsea | 19 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| Fiorentina | 26 | 9 | 4 | – |
| Roma | 83 | 34 | 22 | – |
| Liverpool | 315 | 192 | 83 | 7 |
| Egypt | 91 | 49 | 29 | – |
| Total | 657 | 318 | 165 | 10 |
Mohamed Salah’s career stats so far, as seen above, have seen him score 318 goals in 657 games while providing 165 assists for club and country which is a total of 483 G/A. So far, he’s been able to win 10 trophies in his career, most of which with Liverpool.
Salah’s 13 years in professional football means he averages 24.5 goals per season and 37.2 G/A per season.
Aside goals, assists and trophies, he has 12 individual honours to his name. They include 2x African Footballer Of The Year, 2x Premier League Footballer Of The Year, 4x Golden Boots, 1x Puskas Award, 2x Player Of The Year and 1x Player Of The Season.
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Eden Hazard Stats
Eden Hazard is a Belgian former professional player who mostly played as a winger during his playing days. Retired at 32 years of age, he is well known for his dribbling, creativity, passing and playmaking. Hazard is seen as one of the best wingers of his time.
Hazard started his senior career with Lille in 2007. After spending five years with the French side, he moved to Chelsea in 2012 and then Real Madrid in 2019 after which he retired in 2023.
His stats for club and country can be seen below
| Clubs | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Trophies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lille | 194 | 50 | 53 | 2 |
| Chelsea | 352 | 110 | 92 | 6 |
| Real Madrid | 76 | 7 | 12 | 7 |
| Belgium | 126 | 33 | 36 | – |
| Total | 748 | 200 | 193 | 15 |
Eden Hazard made a total of 748 career appearances for club and country whilst scoring 200 goals and providing 193 assists with a combined 393 G/A at the same time, lifting 15 trophies.
His 16 years as a professional footballer means that he averages 12.5 goals per season and 24.6 G/A per season.
Hazard’s individual awards cannot be overlooked. He was able to win 4 individual honors which are 1x Footballer Of The Year and 3x Club Player Of The Year.
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Salah vs Hazard Best Seasons
It is important to compare the prime seasons of Salah and Hazard respectively.
Salah’s best season came in the 2017/18 season when he just signed for Liverpool and had one of the biggest Premier League debut seasons. Hazard, on the other hand, had his best season in the 2014/15 season with Chelsea with his goals, assists and dazzling performances.
Their stats are better shown in the table below
| Stats | Salah’s 17/18 | Hazard’s 14/15 |
|---|---|---|
| Appearances | 52 | 52 |
| Goals | 44 | 19 |
| Assists | 16 | 13 |
| Individual Honors | 5 | 2 |
| Trophies | – | 2 |
Mo Salah and Eden Hazard produced blistering performances at their peak seasons. Salah’s best season in the 2017/18 season saw him score 44 goals and provide 16 assists, a combined 60 G/A in 52 games, only second to Lionel Messi that season.
Unfortunately not to have lifted any trophy that season but clinched 5 individual honours: African Player Of The Year, Premier League Player Of The Year, Liverpool Player Of The Season, Premier League Golden Boot and The Puskas Award.
Eden Hazard’s numbers were not up to that of Salah with the Belgian scoring 19 and providing 13 assists, a combined 32 G/A in 52 games in the 2014/15 season.
Unlike Hazard, Salah won two trophies with Chelsea: the Premier League title and EFL League Cup, including his two individual awards – Premier League Player Of The Year and Chelsea Player Of The Year.
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Salah Vs Hazard All Time Stats
Now we put their all-time stats in professional football into comparison to determine who’s the better footballer.
| Stats | Salah | Hazard |
|---|---|---|
| Appearances | 657 | 748 |
| Goals | 318 | 200 |
| Assists | 165 | 193 |
| Goals & Assists | 483 | 393 |
| G/A average per year | 37.2 | 24.6 |
| Individual Honors | 12 | 4 |
| Trophies | 10 | 15 |
Mohamed Salah, despite having played fewer games than Eden Hazard, has scored more goals than Hazard.
Salah also has more G/A average per year and individual honours than Hazard although the Belgian won more trophies in his career than Salah currently has.
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Conclusion
Comparing Salah vs Hazard to find out who is better only came up to football fans after Eden Hazard announced his retirement from professional football. From the overall statistics, Salah is better than Hazard. However, Hazard has won more team accolades than Salah.
In the end, it is down to personal preference. But if we go strictly with numbers, Salah is better especially because he has played fewer games plus he has years ahead of him as he is still active.
Nonetheless, it doesn’t take away Hazard’s undoubted talent and achievement.
If you were to choose just one of Hazard or Salah, who would you pick and why?
