Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink said he hoped to be popping the champagne corks at the end of May after steering the Londoners to the FA Cup final with a 2-1 defeat of Arsenal on Saturday.
Didier Drogba's goal six minutes from time sealed victory for Hiddink's obdurate side just four days after an astonishing 7-5 aggregate victory over Liverpool to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Chelsea's season appears to be heading for a hectic finale, with Barcelona waiting in Europe and Manchester United or Everton their prospective FA Cup final opponents. With the experienced Dutchman still saying he will not extend his stay at Stamford Bridge beyond the end of the season, having taken over on a temporary basis when Luiz Felipe Scolari was sacked, the May 30 showpiece is set to be his last game.
"It could be a beautiful final day in May," Hiddink, who could conceivably win the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup with Chelsea, told reporters. "I have my commitment to the Russia team. But it could be quite a week, there could be a whole load of champagne. To play in the Cup final at the end of May is the perfect scenario."
"But (to win all three) we would have to win every game - we play Barcelona in the Champions League and they are a beautiful team, and because Manchester United have a game in hand in the league which is a luxury. Hiddink said Drogba, who looked a shadow of his former self under Scolari earlier in the season, was key to Chelsea's surge.