Always one renowned to be fiercely defensive about his players, it was going to take a lot for Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho to be critical of his team following Saturday’s collapse at Stamford Bridge.

This feat by League One’s Bradford City is a genuine FA Cup giant-killing, the biggest in recent years, and a performance which will see them written into the folklore of the grand old competition.

For Chelsea it is a humiliation that led to the boss of the Premier League leaders to launch into stinging criticism of the players that conceded a two-goal lead before being soundly beaten by a team from two divisions beneath them. 

“It’s a disgrace for a big team to lose to a small team from a lower league,” said Mourinho. “Me and the players must feel ashamed.

“I feel happy for Bradford. In my bad feelings with the game and with the result, I can find space to feel happy for them. But on the other hand, I feel ashamed.”

Chelsea still remain in contention for silverware on three fronts. They face Liverpool tomorrow in the second leg of the League Cup semi-final, which is why Mourinho chose to rest several players.

What he needs from those returning men is for them to respond positively by beating Brendan Rodgers’s Liverpool — the teams are currently tied at 1-1 — before preparing for Saturday’s massive showdown with title rivals Manchester City.

It was all going well when goals from Gary Cahill and midfielder Ramires put Chelsea on the way to victory. However, credit must go to the spirit shown by Phil Parkinson’s men. The game was far from over.

Striker Jon Stead, arguably the best performer on the day, began the scoring for the visitors. Filipe Morais converted a loose ball on 75 minutes to equalise for Bradford. Chelsea were rocking.

However, even then, it was thought Chelsea, by now with Willian and Cesc Fabregas on the pitch, shortly to be followed by Eden Hazard, would hit back.

The fatal blow was dealt by Andy Halliday, on 82 minutes, before Mark Yeates added a fourth as Chelsea’s players chased the game. 

Cue frenetic scenes among the 6,000 travelling away supporters.

Parkinson said: “When we were on the pitch celebrating at the end it did feel a bit surreal, that we’ve come to the league leaders and scored four goals.”