Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole is determined to come back better than ever next season.

Cole has vowed to return from his long-term knee injury a stronger player after sitting out the second half of Chelsea's campaign.

"The way I see it is when I get injured then I will come back stronger," he told Chelsea TV.

"I'm so focused on coming back better and stronger than before. You get knocks in life and you can talk in victory and in glory but when the chips are down and you are in adversity you need to come through that.

"I come in every day and do what the physiotherapists say I need to do to the letter. Then I'll see where it takes me."

He added: "I think why I got injured was because at the start of the season I was playing with little niggles. I had an ankle injury and came back too soon.

"The manager wanted me back, and I tend to want to play through the pain. Maybe that is a lesson learned. It's a hard lesson learned, but I will come back when I'm ready whenever that may be."