Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard to make return to Chelsea following retirement
Chelsea legend Eden Hazard to make Stamford Bridge return for charity
Belgian headlines World XI team for this year's Soccer Aid
Charity match played annually for UNICEF

By Sean Walsh
12:00 PM GMT
Hazard is heading back to west London
Hazard is heading back to west London / Michael Regan/GettyImages
Chelsea legend Eden Hazard will return to Stamford Bridge for this year's Soccer Aid charity match for UNICEF.

Hazard retired from professional football last year after his contract with Real Madrid expires, bringing down the curtain on a glittering career.

He is set to lace up his boots once again in the name of charity this summer, being selected to the World XI side to face England.

"My Chelsea family - I am coming home on Sunday 9th June!" Hazard said. "I can't wait to see you all again. Playing at Stamford Bridge was always amazing. We won so many trophies together there. Some of the very best memories I have in football - seven brilliant years. I miss them.

"As I enter a new chapter, we can write new history with Soccer Aid for UNICEF. Together, we can and will raise millions of pounds for children across the world. So, buy your tickets and let's have a great day together in June."

Mauricio Pochettino
Pochettino will be in the opposition dugout at Stamford Bridge / Richard Heathcote/GettyImages
Hazard will be managed by current Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino, who has been named as the World XI's coach for the second year running. England will be managed by Pochettino's Chelsea predecessor and Hazard's former teammate, Frank Lampard, as well as Harry Redknapp and Robbie Williams.

Pochettino said: "Soccer Aid for UNICEF is a huge event - and one I am delighted to be part of again. The 2023 match was a great experience to be a part of and that is why I was more than happy to accept a return this year, particularly as it will be at Stamford Bridge and with Frank Lampard, a Chelsea legend, in the opposing dugout for England.

"We raised so much money last year, and I hope we can do the same this time, so please get involved and buy your tickets. A sold-out Stamford Bridge generates an incredible atmosphere and we want the players who are part of Soccer Aid 2024 to enjoy that same feeling when they step out on to the pitch on Sunday 9th June."

Lampard added: "Playing in front of a sold-out crowd at Stamford Bridge is special - for any player, on any occasion. I'm excited to be doing that again - this time with Soccer Aid for UNICEF. Managing the Soccer Aid England team with Harry will be a proud moment and great fun - but the main focus is rightly on the millions of pounds we can all raise together. So, please buy your tickets for Sunday 9th June and lend us your support."

Soccer Aid for UNICEF takes place on Sunday 9th June at Stamford Bridge. Tickets are on sale now at socceraid.org.uk/tickets
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Hiroki Ito – Stuttgart’s Mr. Dependable

FotMob - March 19, 2024, 10:57 AM
The discourse surrounding the Bundesliga this term has been dominated by the success of one team – Bayer Leverkusen. Xabi Alonso’s Die Werkself have captured the imagination of a fan base that has longed for success in the league, whilst playing a brand of football that has the neutrals standing up and applauding.
They seem well set on their way to finally dislodge Bayern Munich from the Meisterschale throne, barring an exceptional collapse in the business end of the season. Be that as it may, four points below the Bavarian giants are VfB Stuttgart, in third, who are making giant waves of their own under Sebastian Hoeness.

By Ninad Barbadikar
Now all the fanfare surrounding the Swabians has largely been about Serhou Guirassy’s incredible goal-return in the league – 21 and counting at the time of writing. Their attacking excellence is also accompanied by a stable defence at the back.

By all accounts, Die Schwaben are the third best team in the Bundesliga. One player who needs to be recognised for his contributions to that, is 24-year-old centre-back and Japan international, Hiroki Ito.

Following in the footsteps of fellow Japan internationals who have made a mark at VfB including Shinji Okazaki, Hajime Hosogai, as well as recently departed club captain Wataru Endo, Ito continues to impress.


He joined Stuttgart on loan from J2 League outfit Jubilo Iwata back in 2021 and quickly became a fixture in the first-team setup at the MHPArena, eventually joining the club on a permanent basis. Since then, he has consistently racked up 2000+ league minutes in back-to-back seasons, underlining his availability and thereby the team’s reliance on his performances.

Though he is primarily a left-back by trade, Ito is functionally a hybrid left-sided centre-back. He is able to play full-back, left-centre-back of a back three or be the lone left-sided defender in a back two. This versatility makes him a useful asset, especially in deeper areas.

Pulling strings from deep
Hoeness has deployed a few different setups with Stuttgart this term. In defence though, a back three shape can be commonly observed when they’re building out from the back, starting with the goalkeeper Alexander Nubel. Ito is a key part of that build-up unit alongside captain Waldemar Anton.


Unlike modern attacking full-backs at the top level, Ito is not as involved in attacking sequences, and instead orchestrates from deeper areas as a hybrid presence on the left. Looking at his player traits radar, he ranks in the 95th percentile for touches, underlining just how much of the ball he sees at Stuttgart.

There is a great deal of value in players who can keep the ball ticking under pressure, always make themselves available to receive and play the killer passes when the right spaces open up. All of that constitutes Ito’s passing ability, which is up there with the best in the German top-flight.

It helps that he is an excellent athlete as well, effective at tracking runners and making last-ditch ball recoveries as the last line of defence for Stuttgart.

The Japan international is a superb distributor of the ball from the left. Rarely giving the ball away, Ito seldom looks fazed whilst under pressure. His height of 6ft. 1’ is an advantage here, shielding the ball well with his body to retain possession. He can be a frustrating customer to mark against the ball for opposition attackers.


It is therefore no wonder that his pass success rate is only second to the side’s metronome in midfield, Angelo Stiller.

Though primarily a safety-first passer, Ito’s range of passing comes alive when he’s covering the length of the pitch with his superb diagonals to find runners on the right. Additionally, Ito is also very effectively playing clipped passes into wide channels to find runners, dismantling opposition presses by doing so.

Aiding ball-progression for Stuttgart with his superb passes along the ground as well as medium and long-range, Ito can do it all with the ball.

All of these traits make him absolutely essential to Stuttgart.

Many talents
As a full-back, Ito is conservative with his positioning and waits for the right moments to overlap in behind partner-in-crime on the left, the meteoric Chris Fuhrich.


A good example of such well-timed movements is his assist against Freiburg for Serhou Guirassy’s fifth goal of the season. Fuhrich dragged a marker with him deeper into midfield to open up an overlapping opportunity for Ito, who made no mistake in delivering an inch-perfect cross for Guirassy to tap in.

Although this is not a regular feature of his game from full-back, it just points to how useful his versatility can be for Stuttgart in forward areas.

“Hiro is doing a very good job. You can sense a certain stability in attack and defence. The thrust he brings, the balls he plays, especially his diagonals. He’s got calmness on the ball, “ said former Stuttgart boss Pellegrino Matarazzo about Ito, to Bundesliga.com

Ito spent a great deal of the first half of the season playing full-back before an unfortunate long-term injury to Dan-Axel Zagadou forced Hoeness to shift Ito to left centre-back.

On the front-foot
As a centre-back, Ito strikes a fine balance between being aggressive as well as disciplined.

Due to his experience playing full-back, Ito is comfortable defending wide areas if necessary too, but much like his best passes come with patience and caution, he is equally careful with choosing his battles whilst defending.

It helps to have a teammate at the back like Anton who is more than willing to get stuck into challenges and backs himself to win most duels, Ito chooses to aim for efficiency rather than volume with his defensive actions.


Overall though, the most striking thing about Ito is his composure on the pitch, whether it be with the ball or without it. He is a great reader of the ball, on the ground and in the air too. An average of 1.32 aerials won in the league is strong evidence of that.

The 24-year-old can always be expected to make the right decision for his team, which is precisely what makes him such a valuable asset to the top teams.

What next?
The next step for a player like Ito has to inevitably be away from the Bundesliga, potentially at a top-six Premier League outfit.

The Japan international is at the right age to make a bigger move for his career, now in his third season in the German top flight.

Combine that with the qualities he brings to the table, Ito ticks several boxes to be a useful fit for ball-dominant sides at the top level.

Potentially good fits for him would include Liverpool as well as Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham, both of whom have a lot of use for a hybrid left-sided option like him.

He signed a contract extension to his existing deal at Stuttgart in August, which now expires in the summer of 2027.

That being said, Ito will be a lot more affordable on the market this summer as compared to the premium left-footed options out there for the elite clubs.

In a Stuttgart side packed with exciting attackers, Ito excites without flash but with great substance to his game.

(Cover image from IMAGO)

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