If Alex Ferguson is able to guide Manchester United to their 20th English league title this season, it would surely be the Scotsman's greatest domestic trophy. It is hard to believe the Red Devils have returned to the top of the table with 10 games remaining. But imagine how much further ahead they would be if Ferguson had the calibre of player at the disposal of Manchester City's Roberto Mancini.
United are poised to extend their lead to four points by accounting for relegation-threatened Wolverhampton Wanderers tomorrow. With City hosting a rejuvenated Chelsea on Wednesday, Mancini's men could conceivably fall further off the pace.
The Manchester derby on April 30 - the third-last game of the season - is being billed as the title decider but the truth is that the race could be effectively over by then. In addition to Chelsea, City's tough fixtures include Arsenal, Sunderland and Stoke, at the Britannia Stadium. United's path to the showdown at the Etihad Stadium is a lot more benign, including matches against bottom-feeders Wigan and Queens Park Rangers.
Their European record this season is a telling indicator that neither of these two Manchester clubs are very good in international terms. The fact that both were knocked out of the Europa League by Iberian opposition this week after flopping in the Champions League did little to change that perception.
Mancini will be instantly sacked if they fail to win the title after a spending spree of more than GBP300 million (HK$3.6 billion), and rightly so. With the United squad carrying the determined resilience of bloodied soldiers in the trenches, City's superstars continue to act like spoiled children vying for attention at a dysfunctional family party.
Mario Balotelli and Yaya Toure had a half-time bust-up in the tunnel last weekend at Swansea. Even a midfield plodder like Gareth Barry behaved like a prima donna, shouting with fury at assistant manager David Platt when he was substituted.