The Debate: Who was better - Mohamed Salah or Eden Hazard?

As Liverpool prepares to bid farewell to a club legend, Mohamed Salah's residence among the pantheon of Premier League greats is undoubted.

Whilst Salah has illuminated Premier League stadia for nine glorious years, the modern football fan has loved to indulge in a debate on the Egyptian forward and his standing against other icons of England's top-flight.

One popular topic through the years has been Salah versus Eden Hazard. Instead of replicating Rio Ferdinand and enjoying them both, members of the bet365 News team have put forward their cases on who they believe was better in their prime.

Mohamed Salah escaped Eden Hazard debates when the Belgian retired at 32. The two are incomparable, writes Ellis Statham

Ellis Statham

Only Mohamed Salah has scored more goals than… Only Mohamed Salah has registered more assists than… Only Mohamed Salah has won more PFA Players' Player of the Year awards than… Only Mohamed Salah. He is the benchmark.

There’s no disputing that Eden Hazard was one of Europe's leading wingers in the 2010s, but comparing the two almost seems disrespectful given Salah’s stupendous consistency.

It’s near impossible to put into words the impact that the Egyptian King has had since joining Liverpool from Roma in 2017, shattering a staggering amount of records and becoming THE face of the Premier League.

Salah’s debut season with the Reds, where he recorded 43 goal contributions in the Premier League and outscored three top-flight sides, should have been viewed as a sign of things to come, but he was deemed by many as a ‘one-season wonder’ who wouldn’t be able to replicate anything close to these numbers again.

How naïve.

Salah has amassed 25+ Premier League goal contributions in eight of his nine seasons at Liverpool, failing to do so in the current 2025/26 season in which Dominik Szoboszlai is arguably the only Reds player to perform at their usual standard.

The fact that his two best campaigns in a Liverpool shirt - in 2017/18 and 2024/25 - were seven seasons apart is testament to the Egyptians unrivalled longevity, something that couldn’t be said for Hazard.

While the Belgian did enjoy some productive campaigns at Chelsea, he surpassed 25 goal involvements in just one of his six Premier League terms, even enduring a 356-day goal drought in the top-flight between May 3rd 2015 and April 23rd 2016.

It felt bizarre to see Salah go two to three weeks without finding the net, let alone a year, and that encapsulates the standards set.

Hazard made the €100m switch to Real Madrid in 2019, where he would score just seven goals in an injury-plagued four years, before retiring at the age of 32 in 2023.

To put that into context, Salah entered the 2024/25 season as a 32-year-old. He recorded the most goal involvements (47) in a 38-game Premier League season, notched the most away involvements (27) in a season, won his fourth Golden Boot award, second Playmaker of the Season award and lifted the Reds’ 20th league title.

Whether you analyse goals, assists, impact or longevity when comparing the two, they are simply not in the same league. Even ask Hazard.

When questioned on who he believed was better between him and the Egyptian King, he responded: “Mo Salah, by far!”

Debate sealed.

In a world where statistics overshadow aesthetics, Eden Hazard was an artist who made football seem effortless, writes Jaquob Crooke

Jaquob Crooke

"But so-and-so only recorded 12 goal contributions that campaign", "he was underperforming his xG massively", "but he never reached 25 goal involvements in consecutive seasons".

I'm all for data-led insights and statistical analysis, but sometimes you just need to take a step back and appreciate the craft, flair and ingenuity of an individual weaving their magic on the Premier League.

Eden Hazard was the prime example of an artist decorating the Premier League with his genius. In terms of style, the Belgian playmaker and Salah are difficult to compare; across his stint on Merseyside, Salah has been a robotic goal machine whose consistency has been unmatched.

One notable difference is how they could impact the outcome of a match. Salah could be anonymous for 80 minutes, but if you offered him the tiniest incentive, he would punish the opposition with an outrageous snip of individual brilliance.

Hazard, on the other hand, was the beating heart of Chelsea. He would dictate proceedings before carving open backlines with a deft touch, precise pass or meandering dribble. In his pomp, Hazard was truly mesmerising across large spells of the game.

2014/15 saw Hazard reach phenomenal heights as he inspired Chelsea to the Premier League title and League Cup success whilst scooping PFA Player of the Year. 2018/19 was his most productive, registering 16 goals and 15 assists, but the measurement of goal contributions only scratches the surface of his influence at Stamford Bridge as he excelled in a season where others floundered.

There's no denying Salah belongs amongst the illustrious names of Premier League icons to have blessed us across the last three-and-a-half decades. He boasts the superior goals record, greater longevity and the greater legacy compared to Hazard.

But if we're talking about raw talent who could tug on the heart strings of spectators, the breadth of Hazard's extraordinary skillset reached far beyond Salah's capabilities.

Even Salah's current Liverpool team-mate Curtis Jones recognised Hazard's superiority.

"I know this might go a little bit left with our fans because the comparison is always there, but Hazard is the one [I'd pay to watch]," Jones said on TNT Sports in January 2025.

"It's a talk I've had with Mo and all the lads. As a footballer, is he better than Mo? In my opinion, yes."