GARY CAHILL has not yet won a Premier League title, unlike some other members of the Chelsea squad.
But right now the England defender can scent one on the horizon –and he wants it.
Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea squad still has a core of players who know what it takes to win a title, men like John Terry, Frank Lampard, Petr Cech, Ashley Cole, Michael Essien and John Obi Mikel.
They are players who have been the distance, know the pitfalls, know what it takes over the nine hard months of the English season.
Coupled with the fast emerging, exciting young talent that is slowly but surely this season turning Chelsea into genuine contenders, Cahill believes that his side now have what it takes.
Chelsea’s comprehensive 3-1 win over Manchester United on Sunday at Stamford Bridge not only virtually ended any hope David Moyes’ side had of being contenders. It also made their hopes of a top four place all that more demanding.
Perhaps, more importantly though, Chelsea’s clinical dominance of the game against their old rivals showed for perhaps the first time that Jose Mourinho’s side are beginning to be forged into a genuine force by the Portuguese, after an uncertain start to the campaign.
Cahill, 28, sees the hunger that still resides in players like Terry and Lampard for a fourth title in the Roman Abramovich era and he shares it.
He said: “It’s one of the biggest trophies you can win and I’m sure the lads who have won it before would say the same thing. They’re just as hungry as me to do it again.
The victory took Mourinho’s record of unbeaten home games in the league in his two spells in charge to 71 now.
Cahill said: “It is an incredible record and one day it will come to an end, but hopefully not too soon.
“We have confidence whenever we play at home, which we should have, and always manage to get results here.
“Hopefully that will continue for the rest of the season, but the main thing for us is consistency, to keep performing every week. The lads have got the drive to do that right now and things are going well.
“United are not having the season they would have hoped for, but nevertheless that was a huge fixture no matter how you look at it so we’re obviously very pleased.
“I don’t want to jinx the record – but we do turn up against the big teams. We’ve put in good performances against them and not dropped too many points. If we can stay consistent, which at the moment we are, we have a good feeling among the group and we’re going about our business quietly. Arsenal and Man City are not dropping points either, but this was a great win for us.
“We are going about our business quietly. Hopefully we keep moving forward. We’re starting to play better, we’re defending well. We’re around the top, just a few points behind.
Chelsea are unbeaten in seven games against the top teams this season, and their match at in-form Manchester City at the Etihad on Monday week has been touted by pundits as a possible early title decider.
But Cahill does not see it like that. He said: “I don’t think it’s a decider. There is a long way to go, we’re just over halfway through the season. There have been times where we’ve slipped up and they’ve slipped up away from home.
“We know how devastating they are at home, it’s going to be tough. We beat them here and it’s going to be even harder up there to get a result. It’s one to look forward too.
Mourinho, meanwhile, celebrated the win in painful fashion as he flew to Paris yesterday for surgery on an old elbow injury.
And Samuel Eto’o says he wants to end his career with Mallorca.