Cesar Azpilicueta names Eden Hazard and 2 other ex-Chelsea forwards as his toughest ever opponents

Atletico Madrid star Cesar Azpilicueta has named three of his former Chelsea teammates as his toughest-ever opponents. The veteran defender spent 11 seasons at Stamford Bridge before joining Rojiblancos in 2023.

In a recent interview with ESPN, the 35-year-old was asked to name the three toughest opponents he has faced. He mentioned Eden Hazard, Didier Drogba, and Diego Costa.

Azpilicueta revealed that he faced Hazard in Ligue while he was at Olympique Marseille and the Belgian was on the books of Lille. Interestingly, both players joined Chelsea during the same period in the summer of 2012.

The Spanish international noted that he faced Blues legend Drogba when the Ivorian was at Galatasaray. Azpilicueta arrived at Stamford Bridge the summer Drogba left the London club to join Chinese outfit Shanghai Shenhua. He spent one season in the Chinese Super Lig before returning to Europe with Galatasaray. He later returned to Chelsea for a second stint in 2014 where he shared the dressing room with Azpilicueta.

On his third toughest opponent, Azpilicueta named Diego Costa, whom he faced while the Brazil-born Spanish striker was playing for his current club Atletico Madrid.

Watch the video below:

Azpilicueta shared the dressing room with Eden Hazard at Stamford Bridge for seven seasons, recording five joint-goal participations in 292 matches played together.

He shared the pitch with Diego Costa 106 times for the west London club, recording three joint-goal contributions. The Atletico Madrid star featured alongside Drogba 30 times, but they did not combine for any goal.

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How did Cesar Azpilicueta fare during his time with Chelsea?

Cesar Azpilicueta joined Chelsea in 2012 from Olympique Marseille for a reported £7 million fee. The Spaniard went on to become one of the club's most diligent and reliable players over the years, playing across the centre-back and right-back positions.

He made 508 appearances for the Premier League giants, scoring 17 times and creating 51 more, and is sixth on the club's record appearance holders list. He won nine trophies with the Blues and is the only player to have won every major trophy with the club.

Azpilicueta served as the Blues' captain from 2019 until his exit from Stamford Bridge in 2023.