Guus Hiddink upbeat after FA Cup quarter-final exit

Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink has vowed that his side will continue to play with pride in order to end their season on a high note.

The Blues suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Everton on Saturday evening to leave them competing on just one front this term - the Premier League.

With the West London outfit's hopes of a top-five finish looking more unlikely by the week, Hiddink does however admit that there remains little to compete for between now and May.

"Everyone knows where Chelsea were," he told BBC Sport. "The first task was to get out of the relegation zone and we did that fast - we went from 16th to 10th.

"Then there were two cups at stake. it is important now that we have the pride to play when there is nothing much at stake. We will be proud and play for the public.

"There is a lot of emotions still going on after the game, but when I tried to calm down and analyse, the team did rather well for 70 minutes and then we conceded. The energy was out and we had a few injuries. I cannot criticise our attitude but the sharpness was left around the box."

Chelsea return to action next Saturday when they take on West Ham United at Stamford Bridge.