Mourinho has continued his verbal sparring with Wenger

The Chelsea boss said: "Tell me what a player prefers? To have chances to play now and again, like at Arsenal, one game here and there in the Carling Cup.

"Or like Lassana Diarra was waiting and waiting, but working, and when he went into the team, it was to stay.

"Diarra went from being a nobody to being a first-choice Chelsea player."

News conference: Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho

Ahead of Sunday's Carling Cup final in Cardiff, Mourinho added: "So what is the best process? To give them little chances? Or to work them and put them there when there is no chance to fail and they are completely ready to do it."

But Chelsea's Portuguese manager acknowledged the club's fans have yet to see the best of their youth development programme.

"We have some young boys with good quality, and believe they can do it, but not yet," said Mourinho.

"I can watch and see a right-back with good potential or a centre-back who is improving a lot, but as yet we have none ready for the first team."

"I think you should ask Frank Arnesen, because he can give you a better answer."

Mourinho also continued his verbal sparring with Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, after the Frenchman said there were some managers who had won the Champions League who would "not be considered as great".

Mourinho, who took Porto to the 2004 title, responded with: "I think I am a great manager. Not many did what I did.

"I'm not the best, but I'm in the group of eight, 10, 12, 14 in the world."

Mourinho also reiterated that he had no intention of leaving Chelsea before the end of his contract.

"There are only two ways for me to leave Chelsea. One way is in June 2010. I finish my contract then, and if the club does not give me a new one, it is the end of my contract and I am out," he said.

I think it has everything to be a good final Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho

"The second way is for Chelsea to sack me. There is not a third way - the way the manager decides to leave and walks away. No chance. I would never do this to Chelsea supporters."

Mourinho won the Portuguese title, the Uefa Cup and the Champions League with Porto before moving to Chelsea and leading them to successive top flight titles and a Carling Cup triumph.

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He said: "I am the best in the history of my country. I think that's enough. Portugal is not third world. So what I did there is good enough.

"I came to England and won the title with Chelsea 50 years after they last won it. I was the first to win the title in the first year in the club. I won it twice.

"I won other competitions. I have a few records in the Premiership, I think. Records for victories or goals or not conceding goals, or something like that.

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"Victories at home or unbeatable at home is not a record, but we are not far from the record for that."

However, the Portuguese boss did back Wenger who said that managers who had not won European club football's premier competition can still be considered as "great".

"He is a great manager who has never won the Champions League so I completely agree with him," added the Chelsea manager.