Chelsea win FA Cup as Hiddink bids farewell

Chelsea gave departing coach Guus Hiddink the perfect leaving present when they came from behind to beat Everton 2-1 in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium.

The match, played in extremely hot conditions with the pitch-side thermometer showing 41 Celsius during the first half, made an equally blistering start.

Striker Louis Saha put Everton ahead after just 26 seconds -- the fastest goal ever scored in the FA Cup final. The previous fastest of 30 seconds was scored by Bob Chatt of Aston Villa in 1895.

Chelsea, playing under Hiddink for the last time before he returns to coaching Russia's national team, equalised after 20 minutes when Didier Drogba rose virtually unmarked to head past Tim Howard.

Frank Lampard scored the winner after 72 minutes when he curled the ball home from 20 metres.

Chelsea went close to a third six minutes later when Florent Malouda's ferocious 30-metre shot hit the bar, bounced downwards and was cleared from the line.

Chelsea, by far the better team, deserved the victory which put England defender Ashley Cole in the record books as the first player since the 19th century to win five FA Cup winner's medals. He has won three with Arsenal and two with Chelsea following their victory in 2007.

LIGHTNING STRIKE

Everton made the perfect start when Steven Pienaar's cross from the left was weakly headed out by Jon Obi Mikel straight to Marouane Fellaini, who nodded it back for Saha to crash it past keeper Petr Cech.

The goal also took the Wembley FA Cup final scoring record away from Chelsea's Roberto Di Matteo who had scored the fastest Wembley FA Cup final goal after 41 seconds in 1997.

Chelsea, trailing for the fourth time in an FA Cup match this season, then began to dominate and their superiority paid off after 20 minutes when Florent Malouda, who was tormenting Everton right-back Tony Hibbert and having a superb match, provided the cross for Drogba's equaliser.

With Lampard, Michael Essien, Mikel and Malouda keeping possession almost at will in midfield, Chelsea should have taken the lead just before halftime.

Cole broke in space down the left but smashed his shot wide from only six metres out with only Howard to beat.

Saha had a chance to put Everton ahead again but headed over the bar after 67 minutes and they paid for that miss when Lampard scored at the other end five minutes later.

Lampard switched the ball from his right foot to his left, slipped but still scored with a sweet, curling shot that Howard could only help into the net.

Everton, without a number of injured players including Phil Jagielka, Mikel Arteta and Aiyegbeni Yakubu, simply ran out options as Chelsea went on to win the trophy for the fifth time.