The Manchester City winger, who had a car on standby outside Wembley to take him home to his heavily pregnant wife, was also unable to join his jubilant team-mates in the stands
Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is on course to return to action in April, but admits his knee could not handle the Wembley steps after watching his team win the League Cup.
De Bruyne suffered serious knee and ankle injuries in the semi-final second leg against Everton in January, but he was in London with the rest of the City squad on Sunday to watch the final against Liverpool from the stands.
The midfielder recently had the heavy strapping on his right leg removed but is still some way from a full recovery, and is hoping to be back in full training after Belgium's March fixtures.
"[I'll be back] after the international break, I want to reconnect with the group," he told reporters. "I make that five weeks. Then it might take a few weeks before I can play games.
"Normally I would look at the quarter-finals of the Champions League."
Sunday's final, decided by a penalty shoot-out, was an especially tense occasion for De Bruyne as his girlfriend Michele is due to give birth to their first child.
Already suffering from being unable to contribute on the pitch, the 24-year-old had his mobile phone at hand and a car on standby in case of any developments back at home.
"The club had injured players required to attend the final at Wembley," he said. "Actually I hate to sit in the stands. I prefer to watch at home because if you are here you always want to play.
"From now Michele could give birth at any time. My phone is on night and day. I had a car on standby at Wembley to carry me straight to Manchester if needed."
The former Chelsea man also says it was "strange" to miss the final, having previously scored in every round, but he has set his sights on further silverware this season - not least as he could not join his team-mates for the trophy presentation.
"This was the first prize of the season but it is not the last," he continued.
"I consider the League Cup as my prize because I had played all the games until the semi-finals and have been important.
"So it's a strange feeling to miss the final. I didn't go to the grandstand to get the trophy because all those steps are still too much for my knee.
"But hopefully I'm back in top shape for the main months of the season, the Champions League and Premier League run-ins."
He added: "I think we deserved to win the final. We had the most chances in normal time. Raheem missed some great opportunities but that can happen. The important thing is that you win - no matter what."
- Goal