Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has dismissed big-spending Manchester City as a title threat. "Given all that has happened in the transfer market this summer, it is a different type of challenge we are facing," he reflected.

"We are being challenged for the back pages.

"Manchester City are getting all the back page stories and they will hold that position for the rest of the season because there is a lot of interest in what they have done and a lot of speculation about whether it is going to work.

"But I cannot look at Manchester City as our main competitors. Liverpool and Chelsea are our main competitors. There is no doubt about that."

He added: "We have won the title for the last three years and in the history of the English game no-one has ever won four. That tells you what a competitive league it is.

"Lyon won their league seven times in a row. Dynamo Kiev won nine, as have Celtic and Rangers. Dinamo Berlin 11 in the old East Germany. You will never get that in the English game.

"I am in charge of a football club that has the right philosophy. I have had fantastic moments here. I have 76,000 watching my team in every home game. I shouldn't really concern myself about another team in the same city, no matter what they do."