Jose Mourinho insists Eden Hazard will be welcomed back into his Chelsea squad to face West Bromwich Albion today after punishing the midfielder for missing training this week.
But while Mourinho admits he took a risk in dropping Hazard, he insists he was forced to act to maintain discipline within his squad.u00a0Hazard was left out of the squad to face Schalke on Wednesday after the player lost his passport on an unauthorised trip to watch former club Lille.
Eden Hazard
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That meant the Belgian failed to return in time for training on Monday morning — and led to the manager taking action.u00a0Mourinho said yesterday: “It was a simple story. He went to foreign country when he shouldn’t have and then lost his passport which meant he couldn’t get back for training.
“That was unacceptable but it’s over.u00a0“I think he has reacted well because he apologised to me and to the club. Of course apology not accepted because it was something I couldn’t accept. But it’s over. Now it’s something that doesn’t exist any more. He’s selected and ready to play.
I believe he has appetite to play because he loves to play and I didn’t allow him to play. He’s happy he’s back.u00a0Chelsea will face West Brom without striker Fernando Torres who has a groin strain but is expected to return after the international break.
Mourinho will expect his side to maintain the form they showed in beating Schalke and bounce back after their shock defeat at Newcastle last weekend in the Premier League.u00a0
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