AT ANY other point in Chelsea’s history, a second successive championship would be greeted as if it were a gift from the gods, yet such are the frenzied expectations swirling around this part of West London that today’s celebrations are likely to be muted.

With only a point needed, it is just as well that the champions have the opportunity to embarrass Manchester United, their nearest rivals for the title, as without such Schadenfreude the coronation ceremony could become a complete anticlimax.

There is little doubt that their elimination from the FA Cup last weekend, allied to their early exit from the Champions League, has taken some of the gloss off Chelsea’s season, particularly as Arsenal have unexpectedly reached next month’s final in such thrilling fashion.

John Terry insisted yesterday that he would not swap the Barclays Premiership trophy for a romantic night in Paris, but whether Roman Abramovich is similarly satisfied with only one trophy is a moot point. Unfortunately, the Russian’s views remain a mystery, although his movements in the transfer market this summer should provide an indication.

“At this moment in time I wouldn’t swap places with Arsenal, I honestly wouldn’t,” Terry said. “I believe our time will come in Europe. We’ve got the right manager and right players to go on and do that, and that’s my dream.

“Three or four years ago, if you’d have said I’d have won two Premiership trophies, the Carling Cup and the Community Shield, I’d have bit your hand off. Let’s be happy with where we are. It’s a great achievement. Only Manchester United have done it [successive Premiership titles] and hopefully we’ll go on to win many more.

“If we can win the Premiership, I would see it as a successful season. It’s a great achievement. Obviously, being knocked out of the Champions League and going out of the cups was disappointing, but the one thing we were fully focused on was the Premiership, and we always bounced back in that. Over the course of the season, you look at us and you’d pick us out as the best side in the Premiership.”

There is no doubting Chelsea’s domestic supremacy, but Abramovich bought the club with the intention of it becoming the best in the world, not merely this country. José Mourinho needs no such reminder and is already planning to reshape his squad with a view to winning the Champions League, which Terry accepts they must win soon if they are to step up to the next level.

“I’m definitely happy with that this year and hopefully the year after, but there is a time when we need to start winning everything else,” he said. “We need to start winning the FA Cup and the Champions League, because in the long run that is our aim. Hopefully, we can do that.

“There’s a fine balance — Arsenal have had a disappointing season but have reached the final of the Champions League — but Manchester United had that balance at one point, and hopefully we can.

“I hope we can do what United did and win the Premiership for years. As a player, now I realise how hard it will be. We’re certainly going to strengthen the squad, and as players the hunger is still there. It’s not that we’ve got one Premiership trophy and we’re happy, we’ve moved on to something else. We want to win the Premiership year after year.”

Having watched United do just that throughout the 1990s as a boyhood Red Devil, the significance of winning the title against them is not lost on Terry.

“It would be very nice to do it in our last home game and against United, too,” he said. “To retain the title against them would be an even bigger thing for us, as they’ve been on a great run putting us under pressure. It would make it extra special.”