On Manchester City’s official Youtube channel, a clip has just appeared recording the activities of Man City and Chelsea players in the Etihad Stadium tunnel. The most notable episode in this clip comes from the “joking” between Yaya Toure and Eden Hazard.
While walking onto the field, the Chelsea midfielder was startled when he was slapped hard on the back of his head. Hazard immediately turned around to see who the culprit was. His initial anger immediately subsided when he saw Yaya Toure smiling brightly at him. But the joke didn’t stop, the Ivory Coast player continued to playfully attack the opposing player.
Yaya Toure intentionally teased Hazard when players from both teams walked onto the field after halftime.
The Chelsea midfielder was quite surprised when he was attacked by the Man City star
Hazard quickly realized the Ivory Coast midfielder’s joke.
In contrast to the tension on the field, players from both teams were quite comfortable in the tunnel.
After being discovered, Yaya Toure continued to playfully joke with Hazard.
The Belgian midfielder tried to avoid “love slaps” from his rival.
In an interview with Declan Rice, Toure explained why he slapped the former Chelsea star as the teams exited the field for the second half. He said (via Sports Bible):
“This game, he was taking the ball and no-one could catch him! You know, he has a different posterior, it’s massive!”
“…One time I was explaining it to one journalist, and he was laughing at me! I said why are you laughing? Where you put your feet, he puts his feet like that in the turn!”
Recently, Eden Hazard announced his retirement at the age of 32.
“You have to listen to yourself and know when to stop,” Hazard wrote on Instagram on October 10.
“After 16 years and more than 700 matches, I decided to end my football career. I have fulfilled my dream, playing and having fun on many fields around the world.”
Hazard shined in England’s top flight during his time with Chelsea, winning two Premier League titles. He also won 2 Europa League championships, 1 FA Cup and 1 League Cup with the Blues.
When he moved to Real, despite not playing much, Hazard still won 2 La Liga titles, 1 King’s Cup and 1 Champions League.