Michael Carrick is experiencing an eerie sense of deja-vu - and there is no way he wants to spend another summer mulling over defeat by Chelsea.

In Carrick's first season at Manchester United after his £18.6million move from Tottenham, he won a Premier League title but was prevented from adding to his medal haul by losing to a Didier Drogba goal in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

Twelve months on and the stakes are even higher as England's top two head to Moscow for Wednesday's Champions League showdown.

And having doubled his title collection after United again pipped Chelsea last week, there is no way the Wallsend-born star wants to experience another cup final defeat.

"It is similar to my first season," he said. "We know how bad it felt to lose that final and we want to put it right this time.

"It is bigger because it is the Champions League but we do not want to experience that losing feeling again."

In beating Wigan last Sunday, United confirmed themselves as top dogs domestically, which should, in theory, give them a psychological edge.

However, Chelsea could counter that argument by pointing to their win when the two sides last met at Stamford Bridge three weeks ago.

Carrick is not bragging about any edge United may have. He can just feel the buzz back-to-back title successes generate.

"We want to win the Champions League," he said. "In terms of who's dominant, the league goes out of the window now.

"We've achieved that and moved on from that already and we move on to bigger and better things. Obviously the rewards and losses are massive on Wednesday.

"I don't know about advantages, I just know that we are really confident.

"The training ground is a happy place to be and everyone is really buzzing and looking forward to the game."

"It's a one-off game and what has happened in the past will probably remain there.

"But we are confident and if we are at our best I think we will win the game."

Carrick accepts, however, that Chelsea are highly accomplished opposition and any slip-up in standards could cost United.

He added: "It's very tight. Going into the last game being level, it's tight and the two teams are very well matched.

"We're feeling great that we've won the league and we feel like we're the best team when we play at our best. But we have to be at our best to win the game on Wednesday."

Although Sir Alex Ferguson has often talked of his belief United have not conquered Europe enough for a club of their size, Carrick feels the mere fact they have only won it twice speaks volumes for the difficulty involved.

So, while many fans like to point to the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster and the 40th since the first European Cup win in 1968, Carrick will not allow his mind to wander from the straightforward task of beating Chelsea.

"It would mean everything to come away with a Champions League medal," he said.

"It doesn't happen very often. For this to be only the club's third final speaks volumes of how tough the competition is to win."

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