Jose proud of players

"This medal I do not throw away," he said on the pitch after Didier Drogba had clinched the trophy with four minutes left of extra time. "It means a lot. It is the first time [I have won it].

"We have won every other title before - and the players deserve it so much because of the season we have had; the supporters too for their support. The fans are in my heart. I love these people.

"The team played very, very well."

An elated Drogba jogged off down the tunnel at the end but returned to celebrate with his team-mates – and reveal how much the victory meant after the club lost out to United in the Premiership this season.

"I feel great - if we hadn't won this game we'd have been very frustrated," he commented. "I was just happy to score the first goal in this stadium.

"I want to say thank you to Jose and to [owner] Mister [Roman] Abramovich, because without him I might not be at Chelsea."

John Terry was equally euphoric before lifting the trophy. "This is absolutely unbelievable, fantastic," he gushed. "It's one of the best feelings I've ever experienced.

"Dider took his goal brilliantly. Both teams started tentative, choosing to keep the ball and not make mistakes. We looked fitter going into extra time.

"This makes up for [the other losses] today."

His England team-mate Frank Lampard agreed with that assessment. "The match took a long time to start," he admitted. "We both cancelled each other out. In the end a little bit of quality settled it. It was a very close game: both teams had chances.

"Both teams have been excellent all season. This is massive: the lads have put so much effort in."

Asked whether he would stay at Stamford Bridge next season, he replied:

"That is exactly what I want to do - stay here forever."