Eden Hazard watched Chelsea overcome Schalke from the stands after the Belgian was dropped from the squad having missed training on Monday after his late return from a visit to his former club Lille.

José Mourinho, who made six changes to the team defeated 2-0 at Newcastle United on Saturday, opted against selecting Hazard after confirming he had missed the session earlier this week.

Hazard had been invited to Lille's Ligue 1 game against Monaco and, as a returning hero, had been presented to the crowd before kick-off before taking a seat in the directors' box.

The £34m midfielder, who is Chelsea's joint top scorer this season, was due back at Cobham on Monday morning but was delayed in his return and his omission from the team for the 3-0 victory over Schalke was duly considered punishment for that indiscipline. Mourinho was initially reluctant to address the subject, merely replying: "Willian played fantastically well," when considering Hazard's absence. He had earlier confirmed the 22-year-old had missed training and, when pressed, added: "I don't want to lie. He is not injured.

"Did he forget the time? Look, he's a kid. Kids make mistakes and fathers have to be clever in the way they educate their sons. He didn't play. He wanted to play. He was sad because he didn't play. We won without him. On Saturday [against West Bromwich Albion] he is back. So, end of story. Let's forget Eden because I didn't select him and, on Saturday, he will be with the team. We know his talent. He will be on the bench or playing but he will be in the squad, for sure."

Chelsea will have welcomed the impact made by Samuel Eto'o and Demba Ba, given that scans on Fernando Torres' adductor problem have revealed he will be unavailable until after the international break. Torres suffered the injury in the training session missed by Hazard but faces "two to three weeks" out. "We hope he's back after the national teams but, of course, no chance for this weekend," said Mourinho. "And still a doubt to be back after."

Yet the manager was glowing about Eto'o's contribution. "My favourite players are the players who win matches for me, not the ones who lose matches for me, and Samuel worked with me in the best season of my career [at Internazionale]," he added.

"We won everything. So he's in a good position. He was, for two years, playing without big motivations, training without big motivations, and when you do that you lose condition, sharpness and even appetite. It was not a surprise for me that he arrived here not in the best condition after two years in Anzhi.

"Now, step by step, he's growing. He's 32 but fit and slim. Not a heavy boy. He's intelligent of course, and goals give confidence. The first one was a 'fox' goal. The second goal was a very good collective goal: Willian's choice was fantastic, Ramires' run to give him an extra option was fantastic and Samuel's movement was excellent."