5 promising forwards who flopped at Real Madrid in the last decade

#3 Jesé Rodriguez

Jese is currently playing for Las Palmas in Segunda Division

A third star in a row on this list who emerged from Real Madrid's academy, Jese Rodriguez could not settle as a regular at his boyhood club. A cruciate ligament injury in 2014 and a knee infection following the injury really put Jese off the tracks in his aim to excel at Real Madrid.

Los Blancos sanctioned the versatile striker's exit for good by not including any buy-back clause in his contract when he joined PSG. The intentions were quite clear; Jese was not going to generate the quality they desired. He was no longer the same player they were raving about in 2013 when he broke the single-season goal scoring record for Real Madrid Castilla.

Zinedine Zidane's team at the time was well stocked and there were enough alternatives present in the team that a need to offer Jese regular football wouldn't arise. Jese had a golden opportunity to turn his fortune and prove that he was capable of leading the line at elite clubs with his move to PSG.

Instead, it was his lifestyle and a visible lack of professionalism that risked his reputation in front of French supporters and the media. During his four-year stay in Paris, the Spaniard struggled to establish himself as a proper attacking force and was loaned out in all successive campaigns.

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#2 Luka Jović

Jovic has been an underwhelming back-up to Karim Benzema

While Real Madrid engaged in one of the worst business deals in the club's recent history, Eintracht Frankfurt pulled off an absolute jackpot for themselves. At the center of it all, Luka Jovic. The biggest move of the striker's career turned out to be the baddest.

In many ways, this was a similar signing to that of Mariano Diaz. One outstanding season, and the Madrid club were out splashing cash. Those €60 million Euros seem like they were flushed down a drain. At Frankfurt, Jovic played upfront with a fellow striker and so when he was tasked to lead the line at Real Madrid as a No.9, he couldn't find his feet. Eventually, he felt out of proportion in Zidane's system.

The Serbian played 15 games in La Liga for Los Blancos last season under Zidane and couldn't manage a single goal contribution. He was then loaned to his former club Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, where he started brightly, but the early sparks were gone as he ended his tally of 19 matches with just 4 goals.

Real Madrid have predominantly employed the 4-3-3 system whoever the manager is, and it has been a part of their free-flowing football identity. Carlo Ancelotti is also sticking with the same, meaning Jovic will continue to play second-fiddle to Karim Benzema.

His struggles in the central No.9 position has been very evident. Unless Ancelotti works out some magical scheme with him, it will be difficult to see Jovic thriving and taking over the baton from the French striker.

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#1 Eden Hazard

Hazard is the most expensive Real Madrid signing ever at €115m

They say, "Form is temporary, but class is permanent." But we can be sure that Eden Hazard will not care one bit about that famous statement if you were to give him an opportunity to take some form for a run of five or six games. The biggest reason for Hazard's abysmal time has been his constant injuries.

In his debut season at Real Madrid, Hazard was injured in a Champions League game against PSG. After recovering from that injury, he ended up suffering with another one against Levante in La Liga. Hazard ended his first season at the Bernabeu having scored just one goal in 22 La Liga matches. He also missed his first two El Clasico games due to those injuries. What a shame.

There was little to cheer about in Hazard's case last season as well, as he made 24 appearances in the Spanish top-flight with only five goal contributions. Last month, Hazard achieved a rather relieving feat that was an apt summary of how out of fitness he had been at Real Madrid. The draw against Villareal was the first time the Belgian has played five successive games for Real Madrid.

In his last season at Chelsea, Hazard was prolific while functioning in spaces behind the striker. He managed a mouth-watering tally of 21 goals and 17 assists. But consistency and momentum were key to the forward's success at Chelsea. He missed only 21 games due to injury during his time at Stamford Bridge in his seven years. At Real Madrid he has already missed nearly 60.

Oh Cristiano, how have you enchanted the No.7 jersey at Real Madrid, everyone who tries to own it, seems to crumble.