Ferguson confident keeping Man Utd at top despite new challenges

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is confident keeping the club at the top of the tree.

He has overcome the past challenges of ­Arsenal and Chelsea and is now ­determined to repel the ascent of Manchester City and Spurs.

Ferguson said: “Every ­season it’s the ­expectations you have to live with. Once you’ve been there, you want to stay there. It’s like climbing a ­mountain. I’ve climbed Ben Donich in Scotland, and when you get up there, it’s so fantastic. The only ­problem is you’ve got to come down.

“It’s a tribute to us,” he added. “We won our first ­Premier League title in the 1992/3 season – 20 years later we’re still in there battling.

“We had 10 years with ­Arsenal, which were tough, and the games became physical and ­controversial. Chelsea got off to a good start under Jose Mourinho and we found it ­difficult to catch them.

“It’s a tough league. You don’t get two teams streets ahead, as you do in other leagues, like Germany, Spain and Portugal.

“We’re finding that this ­season with City and Spurs. The ­landscape is ­changing. But if we can win the games at Chelsea and Spurs, it will give us a good chance.

“We’ve not won a league match at Stamford Bridge for 10 years, but we’ve won the last four games against Chelsea so that helps.”