Favourites - in more ways than one!

There’s nothing shy and retiring about Sir Alex Ferguson, even if he is about to collect his bus pass and pension book. Despite some 20 years as Manchester United boss and well over 1,000 games in charge, there’s no sign whatsoever that he’s losing his appetite, or his touch.

But the most significant change this season is that Alex is smiling a lot more and no wonder – with a four point lead at the top of the Premiership over faltering Chelsea, he’s relishing the second half of the campaign, when United traditionally perform better.

He’s also found something else to smile about. The oldest cliché about Manchester United is that you either love them or hate them and to Alex’s surprise, they seem to have acquired a whole host of new fans.

It isn’t merely the result of recent extensions to Old Trafford either. Most of the new support comes from fans of other clubs. They have not abandoned their normal allegiance but they have chosen to add Manchester United to their favourites for two very good reasons – they admire the exciting attacking football United play and they detest the arrogance and the tedium of Chelsea.

That’s why Sir Alex confidently declares that the country is willing his team to win the Premiership. And apart from the Chelsea hard core, and the red part of Merseyside, he’s absolutely right.