Antonio Conte has urged Eden Hazard to seize the opportunity of returning to the Champions League this season to fully “exploit” his talent and finally prove himself as one of the finest in the game - but admitted it was also his task as a manager to bring that out.

While the Chelsea boss was gushing in his praise of Hazard at the end of a week that saw the Belgian help guide his side a memorable 2-1 win over Atletico Madrid, Conte did say he feels that the playmaker is often too happy to settle for one goal in a game, in contrast to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

It is of course something that has been regularly said of the 26-year-old because he isn’t quite as devastating as he could be on a regular basis. The feeling has often been that his satisfactory level of drive hasn’t always matched the exquisite level of his talent, and is something his father has even discussed with his coaches.

“I think he has a style to improve in this specific situation,” Conte said on Friday ahead of the champions’ home match against Manchester City. “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.

“I see, for Ronaldo, that if he scores once he wants two, three, four. It's the same for Messi. Yes, he [Hazard] can improve. But I think that, during the games, when you create – for example, at Atletico, he was important because he put the ball in for Alvaro to score our goal... It's very important that he is important in every game for us, to make chances, to score or to provide assists for our players. Very important.

“But, as you know very well, Eden for sure is a top player. I think in this season he has a big opportunity. Because, this season, we can play in the Champions League. I think the Champions League, together with the Premier League, is important for a player to show you are a top player and can compete to be the best.”

“If God gives you this talent, you must exploit this talent. My task is sometimes to try and push him to be decisive in every moment, in every game, and also that the team-mates wait for this.”

The Belgian in training with his Chelsea teammates at Cobham (Getty)

Conte said that he didn’t want Hazard to become more “selfish”, something that is often said about the Belgian and players in such situations, insisting that is the wrong way to look at it that way.

“I don't think 'selfish' is the right word. I don't like selfish players, honestly. I like players who are used to thinking about the team. Used to thinking about 'us', not 'me'. 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.

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

“I'm seeing great determination. Above all when he started to train again with us after a bad injury, after a surgery. He understood that he needed to work very strong to recover very well. Also because you have good competition in our squad, with Pedro and Willian and Cesc [Fabregas] is playing as a No10. I think this good competition is very important also, for him.”

Conte re-iterated that it was also up to him as a manager to encourage this in Hazard.