by Why Delilah

CHELSEA assistant coach Ray Wilkins hailed controversial captain John Terry after his second-half goal sealed victory over Stoke.

Goals from Frank Lampard and Terry gave Chelsea a place in the last four where they will meet Aston Villa at Wembley.

Terry was booed and abused all afternoon by Stoke fans, but had the last laugh by scoring the Blues’ decisive goal and then running to the corner flag and pointing at his captain’s armband.

Terry’s action was in clear response to the criticism he had received from City’s supporters.

When asked about the abuse, Wilkins replied: “I’m not too happy about it, but John’s dealing with the situation in the only way he can – committing himself to the cause.”

When quizzed about Terry’s celebration, Wilkins added: “He was taking a bit too much stick from the Stoke fans and wanted to demonstrate that.

“He’s an exceptional captain and we’re delighted to have him.

“He leads these players on the pitch in fantastic fashion and scored a great second goal.”

Terry paid tribute to the club for their support during a difficult period which saw him lose the England captaincy over his alleged affair with the estranged partner of former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge.

“The armband means a lot,” , of course,” said Terry. “Chelsea have been very supportive, the players as well, but we wanted to show the fans how much it meant to us.

“We had a couple of days to work on Stoke’s set plays but they can play as well, but on a dodgy pitch, I thought we played well,” Terry said.

Wilkins was delighted with Chelsea’s response following their 4-2 home league defeat by Manchester City last weekend.

“Stoke put you under a lot of pressure, especially from dead balls and long throws, but our concentration was fantastic,” he said.

“Stoke work extremely hard, are superbly organised and make it difficult for you. Defensively we were very strong indeed.”

Chelsea now face Aston Villa in a Wembley semi-final, and Wilkins added: “Aston
Villa are a very strong side and beat us earlier in the season.

“It will be another tough game.”

England midfielder Joe Cole was again left out of the starting line-up by Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti but Wilkins insists the player will get his chance.

“We have a superb squad of players and Carlo has a very difficult task in picking a side,” he added. “Everyone merits a place in our team, but that was the side today.

“Joe’s had a very traumatic time with his knee, and you get highs and lows. He’ll play plenty of games for Chelsea, don’t you worry.

“I’ve no idea whether he’ll sign his contract, but that will be done towards the latter stages of the season.”

Stoke boss Tony Pulis defended his supporters over their treatment of Terry and claimed that the Chelsea captain will come home a hero if England win the World Cup in South Africa this summer.

“Our fans are brilliant, different class,” said Pulis. “John will have to accept he’ll take stick. He took stick from England supporters the other night.

“If John does well in the World Cup and wins it, he’ll come back a hero.

“We’ve knocked Arsenal and Man City out. To pull Chelsea out of the hat at Stamford Bridge was a difficult tie.

“The players were first class, we gave everything and had a right go.”