One of football’s great under-discussed themes is that, at its very core, there has always been a contradiction that conditions the sport itself and how its very participants develop. It is a game that becomes a job, a childhood past-time that becomes an adult profession.

In other words, it is something that is first enjoyed but then becomes something to be worked on and perfected, and the two aren’t always mutually beneficial. Enjoyment can involve an indulgence and expression that doesn’t always naturally synchronise with the single-minded pursuit of success.

As part of that, there will always be those players who just enjoy playing the game and then those who just enjoy it when they win, even if there is obviously a broad spectrum in between those two poles.

It’s a little hard to say exactly where Eden Hazard is on that spectrum but it was a theme that Antonio Conte manager inadvertently touched upon when discussing his playmaker’s drive, as well as the endlessly recurring debate over whether he is the third best player in the world and what he needs to do to get to the level of Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi.

“I think that, sometimes, Eden is... If he scores one goal, he's happy and then, if there is another situation, he prefers to make an assist rather than scoring twice,” Conte said.

“I see, for Ronaldo, that if he scores once he wants two, three, four. It's the same for Messi... Eden is not selfish. He's a player who loves to play football and enjoys playing football. I like this behaviour, his attitude. But, for sure, I like to repeat to him that in every game he must be decisive.”

Put another way, it could be fair to say that Hazard doesn’t always just single-mindedly go for goal because he enjoys the multiple choices of creativity too much, of doing something different. That would chime with what those who know him best say, too.

Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Show all 22 1 /22 Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Thibaut Courtois – 5 Was sent the wrong way from a penalty then parried a shot into the danger zone and was fortunate not to hand Atletico another goal. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Cesar Azpilicueta – 5 Quiet night but was often on hand to deny Greizmann. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings David Luiz – 4 Oozed his usual class when playing forward long passes but the way he conceded a penalty was the antithesis of class. A foolish grab on Lucas in box after he lost his marker gave the referee no option but to point to the spot. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Gary Cahill – 6 Was very composed in difficult situations and patrolled the back line well. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Victor Moses – 5 Struggled to get forward but played well in defence. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Tiemoue Bakayoko – 5 Broke up play well and kept Greizmann very quiet in the first half. A clumsy challenge late in the game might have resulted in a penalty but fortune favoured the the midfielder and he got away with it. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Cesc Fabregas – 6 Received licence to play a little further forward than usual and was involved in some easy-on-the-eye moves. Rarely gave away the ball. Chelsea FC via Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Marcos Alonso – 6 Had a goal-bound shot deflected wide on the edge of the area. Set up Batsuayi's late goal with a precise low cross. Chelsea FC via Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings N’Golo Kante – 6 Pressed Atletico high up the pitch and initiated several attacks with successful tackles in dangerous areas. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Eden Hazard – 8 Was instrumental in everything that Chelsea did well. Hit the post in the first half and generally caused havoc. He linked up very well with Morata and his driven cross for the Spaniard’s goal was perfect and reflected the quality of his game. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Alvaro Morata – 7 The home fans greeted the former Real Madrid forward with a frosty reception but he had the last laugh when timing his run to nod in Hazard’s near post cross in the second half. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Jan Oblak - 7 Did very well to keep Hazard and Morata at bay with a string of good saves in the first half. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Juanfran - 6 Set up some good chances with accurate crossing when going forward and was always well positioned at the back. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Diego Godin - 6 Dealt with every cross Chelsea hurled at him, another dominant display from the experienced defender. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Lucas Hernandez - 6 Read the game very well and often positioned himself to intercept Chelsea’s final passes. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Filipe Luis - 5 Did well to prevent the advances of Victor Moses. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Saul Niguez - 5 Probably should have doubled Atletico’s lead when Courtois palmed a shot into his path but the midfield fired wide from just outside the six yard box. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Thomas - 5 Picked up a yellow card early in the second half but was generally good in one-on-one tackles Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Koke - 5 Had a couple of ‘pop shots’ saved by Courtois and was accurate in his passing. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Yannick Carrasco - 6 Smart on the break and made the right decisions when moving the ball in advanced areas. Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Antoine Griezmann - 6 Sporadically got on the ball in the first half but was unable to influence the game in a meaningful way. Took his penalty well but on the whole it was a poor night for the French sensation. AFP/Getty Images Atletico Madrid vs Chelsea player ratings Angel Correa - 5 Had little joy on the ball against any of the Chelsea defenders but showed glimpses of quality when given space to cross. Often pressed the back line but usually did so alone and with little success. Getty Images

They have described how “winning has never been an obsession” for Hazard - or, at least, that greater level Roy Keane-style obsession - because his primary interests have always been enjoyment and getting supporters to enjoy themselves. They say he simply loves it when a crowd is noticeably entertained by what he does. That, really, is what drives him.

That isn’t necessarily a concern, because it also chimes with the views of some of the most celebrated players in the game. Ronaldinho is an obvious one, because he himself would always look to eschew the obvious for a move that no one had ever thought of.

A vintage example was his own famous toe-poke strike against Chelsea in 2005, something he was said to have described at the time as a “Salvador Dali goal".

As recently as July, then, another cherished creator in Roberto Baggio told the Independent the following: “If I could try to do the magical thing, I would, but always in an effective way. If there’s something beautiful about it, it’s better. I would do what I felt like doing, what came naturally to me.

“I liked to score, but I also liked to make somebody else score. It was something that was very satisfying, to take someone there.”

“I always had that joy of the game in my eyes everywhere I played, because it was the best thing.”

Hazard has an eye for the outrageous (Getty)

You can imagine Hazard nodding his head to all of that. Someone like Keane might agree in theory, but then there are stories of him roaring at overly expressive teammates to “cut out the shite!”

The challenge for Conte then is to manage Hazard so that creativity is honed, so he can still entertain but in a way that is incisive, so that sense of enjoyment is not lost but the player still wins as much as his talent suggests he should. Again, those who know the Belgian say they feel that is happening for a few reasons.

First of all, Hazard himself is getting older and more mature. Even someone as raucously creative as Ronaldinho, after all, enjoyed rampant success around the age of 26. He was at that age in that ‘goldilocks zone’ where talent, physical condition, maturity and experience all gloriously came together.

Secondly, it is felt that Hazard has greatly benefitted from Conte’s “playstation instructions”. The Italian gives him specific attacking instructions, and coaches him within structured team moves, but they crucially still allow enough space for Hazard to entertain and create.