Juan Mata names his greatest ever Premier League player

Juan Mata has listed former Chelsea teammate Eden Hazard as the greatest footballer to play in the Premier League. According to the Spaniard, playing with and against Hazard was an absolute joy.

Hazard joined Chelsea from LOSC Lille in 2012, going on to mark his own chapter in the club’s iconic, remarkable pages of history. A total of 110 goals and 81 assists in just over 350 appearances resulted in six trophies and a tag of arguably the best-ever to have donned the famous blue of Chelsea.

Mata on the other hand, was an absolute fan favourite at Stamford Bridge as well. The pass-master was on top of the league, before lack of game time under Jose Mourinho ended his career at West London.

The duo played about one-and-a-half years together, and that was perhaps, enough convincing for Mata to name Hazard as the best.

Speaking in a question-answer session on Manchester United‘s official website, he stated:

“The best Premier League player; I mean, I used to love to play with, and against, Eden Hazard. For me, for many years, he was the best in the league. He could win games by himself. I used to train with him and I know how good he can be.”

Mata further mentioned the likes of Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard, John Terry and Didier Drogba, adding that it is a tough ask to handpick one or two amongst them.