Revealed: How Man United lost out on Eden Hazard to Chelsea in 2012

Manchester United reportedly missed out on the signing of Eden Hazard back in 2012 after club officials refused to make a secret multimillion-pound payment to his agent.

Hazard signed for Premier League rivals Chelsea from French club Lille for a reported £32million fee.

The winger went on to win two Premier League titles and lifted the Europa League twice, the FA Cup and League Cup during a glittering seven-year spell with the Blues.

According to the Times, Hazard had been on the cusp of a transfer to Man United in the summer of 2012, with the club having agreed a fee with Lille and personal terms with the Belgian winger.

Hazard’s then agent, John Bico, reportedly then suggested the club pay him £1million while demanding millions more directly from Man United’s ownership.

Club officials reportedly refused to agree, stressing that such an arrangement would have breached both Premier League and UEFA rules.

The Times reported that the Premier League are still investigating a €7million (£6million) payment by an offshore company owned by Roman Abramovich, Chelsea’s owner at the time, to Bico in 2013.

There is no suggested Hazard, the PFA Player of the Year in the 2014-15 season, was aware of his agent’s demand. The Belgian and his brother Thorgan split from Bico in 2014.

Bico was arrested last year and is facing unconnected charges of financial crime in Belgium.

Abramovich, 58, owned the Blues between 2003 and 2022, until he was sanctioned by the UK government and disqualified as a director of the club by the top flight after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

When the Todd Boehly-led consortium purchased Chelsea in May 2022, they self-reported historical cases of incomplete financial information during Abramovich's tenure.

In July 2023, UEFA fined the Blues €10m (£8.6m) for 'submitting incomplete financial information' between 2012 and 2019.

The Guardian and Bureau of Investigative Journalism later reported that leaked documents showed how Abramovich allegedly used offshore companies to make transactions to agents and associates, which appeared to benefit Chelsea.

These alleged payments were said to be worth tens of millions of pounds and could therefore have breached financial rules if not officially declared.

Last year, former Chelsea chief executive Marina Granovskaia was questioned over what she knew about the secret payments allegedly made under the ownership of Abramovich.

According to The Guardian, the documents appeared to show that Granovskaia was made aware of the payment to Hazard's agent, as well as fees related to the transfers of Willian and Samuel Eto'o to Chelsea.

Granovskaia has reportedly declined to comment.

Speaking back in 2023 after the Guardian and Bureau of Investigative Journalism claims, a Chelsea spokesperson said: 'These allegations pre-date the club's current ownership. They are based on documents which the club has not been shown and do not relate to any individual who is presently at the club.

'(During the purchase of the club the current owners become aware of) potentially incomplete financial reporting concerning historical transactions during the club's previous ownership.

'Immediately following the completion of the purchase, the club proactively self-reported these matters to all applicable football regulators.

In accordance with the club's ownership group's core principles of full compliance and transparency the club has proactively assisted the applicable regulators with their investigations and will continue to do so.'

Chelsea are reportedly in talks over a financial settlement with the Premier League.