Boss Proud, But Realistic

Sir Alex Ferguson was proud to see his side take the Premier League title race to the wire with victory at Sunderland, but is realistic about the Reds' hopes of winning a fourth successive title.

Chelsea's comfortable win at Liverpool in Sunday's early kick-off piled the pressure on United at the Stadium of Light, but only profligate finishing prevented a resounding victory after the Reds' imperious display.

"The players' attitude was terrific," Sir Alex told Sky Sports. "There was good commitment from them, they enjoyed the game and played good football. It was quite a stormy type of game, Sunderland were very aggressive in their approach to the game. There were a lot of tackles and we had to have bite in our game and I think we were that way.

"I think we were careless in our finishing. We had a lot of great chances and they probably felt they were comfortable. we got there, and that's the important thing. Three points and a 1-0 victory away from home is always a good result."

The Reds trail Carlo Ancelotti's side by a solitary point going into the final weekend of the season in seven days' time, when champions and challengers host Stoke City and Wigan Athletic respectively.

Rather than resort to any manner of psychological warfare, however, Sir Alex is philosophical about the propensity for an unpredictable season to spring one last shock next weekend.


"All we can do is win our game next week. We want to do that in front of our fans on the last day of the season, and obviously I wouldn't insult Wigan because they're a really good footballing team. They'll have a go and you never know what happens in football. It's a crazy game.

"We are clutching at straws a little bit, but the important thing is for us to win our game and enjoy it in front of our fans. There'll be 76,000 there, we'll play the right way and we'll play with a lot of dignity in our game. We just stretch it out, keep the nerves going, you never know!"