Thibaut Courtois on Eden Hazard to Real Madrid: 'I Would Like Him to Be Here'

Tim Ireland/Associated Press

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has said he would like to see his former Chelsea team-mate Eden Hazard join him at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

Hazard's potential move to Real is likely to be one of the key transfer sagas of the summer window.

His Blues contract expires in 2020, he has long been linked with the Spanish giants and he has dropped regular hints about potentially departing Stamford Bridge:

Zinedine Zidane's return to the manager's role at Real could have an influence as Hazard has regularly described how much he admires the Frenchman:

Courtois, 26, moved to Real from Chelsea last summer. He said he does not know if Los Blancos even want to sign his fellow Belgium international, but he is keen for Hazard to make the move, per Onda Cero (h/t Dejan Kalinic of Goal):

"I don't know if he is going to sign for Real Madrid, nor do I know if the club want him. For me, he is a great player, but I don't decide those things. Each one decides what he does with his life. For me, he is one of the best in the world and as a friend I would like him to be here."

A key stumbling block for Real if they do want to sign Hazard, 28, could be Chelsea's FIFA-imposed transfer ban.

The west London club are not allowed to sign any new players for the next two transfer windows.

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As a result, Blues defender Andreas Christensen recently said Chelsea "want to keep all the players" this summer, per Ekstra Bladet (h/t Chris Burton of Goal).

That is an understandable position to take, especially in relation to Hazard, who is arguably the Blues' most important player.

No Chelsea player this season has provided more goals or assists than Hazard, who has reached double figures for both in the Premier League:

There is also the issue, that if Chelsea do not sell Hazard this summer, they then risk losing him for free a year later when his contract expires. 

If Real do want to sign the former Lille man, they may be able to take advantage of that fact as Chelsea would surely be tempted by a sizeable offer.