Creme de la Prem

SO ALEX Ferguson once more wraps his arms around the Premiership trophy.

It is not his preferred silverware. He would much rather still be chasing the huge Champions League cup which will be on offer at Old Trafford later this month.

But that should not detract from Ferguson's achievement in guiding Manchester United to their eighth Premiership title in 11 seasons.

That is some record. That is domination by any yardstick. And it will taste sweet for so many reasons.

Not least because it is a Glaswegian kiss for the critics who were preparing to dance delightedly on the grave of the Ferguson dynasty a few short months ago.

'Fall of the Fergie Empire' proclaimed the headlines when the fall-out from the Roy Keane World Cup fiasco was still fresh, when United slumped to 10th place in the Premiership, when Danny Pugh and Lee Roche were on the substitutes' bench as eight first-teamers went under the surgeon's knife, when Diego Forlan couldn't beg, steal or borrow a goal, and when murmurs of discontent were aimed at Ferguson's new Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz.

Last autumn, Ferguson was right up to his neck in it, utterly squelching in the biggest mess he has experienced in nearly 17 years at Old Trafford.

Even Ferguson himself admitted in those early weeks that United had "lost their cutting edge".

To have overcome all that and once more assumed the keys to the Premiership kingdom says much for Ferguson's resolve and driven ambition.

Admittedly, defeat in the Champions League against Real Madrid was a disappointment, but in its way domestic success this year of all years is just as impressive as that phenomenal treble-winning year of 1999, when fortune smiled kindly on everything Ferguson touched.

Mostly, however, winning the Premiership 2003 will taste sweet to Ferguson because he has repelled the challenge of Arsene Wenger. It is no secret Ferguson and Wenger do not see eye to eye. Their mind games are famous and frequent, though Ferguson's dislike was fuelled this season by Wenger's insistence on proclaiming the "greatness" of his team.

True, the Gunners had won the double the previous season, but Wenger's boast that they could go through this season "unbeaten" was the reddest of rags to Ferguson.

As it was, Wenger's predictions of title glory appeared sound judgment back on March 2, when Arsenal were in the midst of an imperious stride, eight points clear of United at the top of the Premiership.

But it looked pretty lame yesterday.

So how did Ferguson turn it around and why did Arsenal, whose early form was so devastating, lose their way? As in every great race there were several defining moments. For United perhaps the most important was their 3-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City in November.

The dynasty, it seemed, was on the point of disintegration, but Ferguson's crushing dressing-room fury is not easily ignored. From that point onwards there was renewed drive and a fresh determination among a squad in which fringe players such as Phil Neville played vital roles.

Slowly, established stars such as Keane, Scholes and Butt returned from injuries and the momentum returned. And of course, Ruud van Nistelrooy kept smashing in the goals.

At Stg£18.5 million, van Nistelrooy could yet prove the shrewdest bargain of Ferguson's reign. With Keane struggling physically and David Beckham inconsistent, it is often the big Dutch striker who carries United's fight to the opposition.

The similarities between van Nistelrooy and Arsenal's Thierry Henry are often analysed, but the truth is they are both world-class spearheads with vastly differing styles.

Henry is swifter, silkier and capable of the genuinely unexpected. He is the most stylish act in the Premiership, but there is no-one better than van Nistelrooy at putting the ball in the back of the net.

That is after all the essence of the striker's art, and ultimately it gave United an edge in the season's run-in when the Gunners began to falter.

Wenger will look back ruefully at last month's match against United at Highbury, when Arsenal went 2-1 up, only for Ryan Giggs to equalise immediately with a close-range header a goal which saw Wenger stamping and gesticulating uncharacteristically on the touchline in frustration at his team's lack of concentration.

He will also have rued their slackness in squandering a two-goal advantage to allow Bolton to battle back for a point a week ago.

But, in truth, the title is back at Old Trafford because United demonstrated strength and conviction when it mattered most, possessed a squad which belied their 'Rolex Culture' image, and demonstrated a hunger that Arsenal failed to match.

It helped that Robert Pires struggled to regain his form prior to his knee operation, that Freddie Ljungberg's season was dogged by injury, and that Wenger has struggled to replace Tony Adams at the heart of his defence, despite the growing presence of Sol Campbell.

Too often Arsenal, a team whose passing speed and ingenuity of movement makes them unplayable at times, have been over-reliant on the brilliance of Henry. Yet it would be churlish to carp about the deficiencies of a fabulous team who might yet retain the FA Cup they won last year.

For at last it has been a competitive and captivating title race, impossible to call until the tape was within touching distance. The one pity was that it was again just United and Arsenal in the shake-up.

For years English football has sat on its high horse and looked down on the Scottish league as Rangers and Celtic battled for major honours with no-one else in sight.

The Premiership is not quite as starkly drawn, but Newcastle, Liverpool and Chelsea once again fell away disturbingly early, and there are signs that the rich are getting inexorably richer while the rest simply hang on for dear life.

Meanwhile, Ferguson marches on defiantly, retaining that uncanny knack of getting his side to raise their game when the stakes are highest.

It's the hallmark of true champions.