Eden Hazard with Charlie Morgan, the Swansea ballboy he kicked in 2013. (Image: X (@hazardeden10).)
Chelsea icon Eden Hazard has reunited with the Swansea ballboy he kicked during a match in 2013, seemingly reconciling after the Belgian was previously handed a three-match ban for the bizarre incident. Charlie Morgan became an online sensation and has since started his own vodka brand, soaring his mammoth net worth in the process.
Swansea had won 2-0 away to Chelsea in the first leg of their League Cup semi-final 11 years ago and were playing out a stalemate back in Wales, before Hazard and a ballboy were involved as tempers boiled over.
With 10 minutes remaining, Morgan appeared to slow down play as he took his time before returning the ball to Swansea goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel. Hazard did not take too kindly to these antics and attempted to fetch the ball himself before Morgan fell onto it.
In an attempt to free the ball, Hazard tried to kick it from underneath the ballboy and sparked fury among the hosts as several players sprinted over to Chelsea's star man and demanded that he be sent off.
Eden Hazard kicking Swansea ballboy Charlie Morgan. (Image: Sky News.)
The referee duly obliged and the Welsh team held on to reach Wembley, where they defeated Bradford 5-0. The incident between Hazard and a then-17-year-old Morgan made headlines, but the youngster has since gone on to have huge success in another sector.
He founded Au Vodka with Jackson Quinn and their company has since been endorsed by the likes of Floyd Mayweather, Jake Paul and Ronaldinho, with Morgan reaching a net worth of £40m.
And he has since made peace with Hazard, who shared a picture of them together on social media with the caption: "A nice thing about retirement is catching up with old friends. You have come a long way in 11 years my friend."
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Morgan was named in the Sunday Times Rich List in 2022 and is the son of hotel tycoon Martin Morgan, who is also worth around £65m. But Morgan has been keen to wipe the slate clean between himself and Hazard.
"The ballboy incident was a crazy night and let’s be honest it’s something that will be remembered for a long time," he told the Daily Mail two years ago.
"For me, a big part of creating Au Vodka and trying to make a success of this brand was to not just be known as 'that Swansea Ballboy', but for people to see that that ballboy went on to create something really special."