Three seasons ago, it appeared United's dominance was over.

Another year without the league title was about to pass by and many pundits were wondering if it was time for Ferguson to call it a day.

But behind the scenes, the Scot was scheming and plotting.

His past triumphs had given him the time to construct another mighty team that has gone on to clinch back-to-back championships and win the Champions League.

They are the trophies current leaders Liverpool and Chelsea, who visit Old Trafford on Sunday, are so desperate to grab themselves.

But Ferguson knows he had a big advantage in the certain knowledge he has time on his side.

"The difference between Chelsea and ourselves is that they have changed their management structure three times recently," said Ferguson.

"The longevity I have means I can take the long view all the time.

"I can look three or four years ahead. Managers coming into other clubs do not have that time."

It is the main reason Ferguson has successfully been able to halt Roman Abramovich's seemingly unstoppable march towards silverware, to such an extent the Russian seems to have fallen out of love with the game.

Abramovich will not be at Old Trafford for Sunday's title crunch, although Ferguson feels the Chelsea owner still has plenty to contribute.

"He seems to have had less impact than he has had in previous seasons but that doesn't mean he is bored," said Ferguson.

"From what I know of him he enjoys his football. It has become a big part of his life."

Nevertheless, the bottomless pit of money Chelsea managers used to have at their disposal seems to have dried up.

No big-name signings are expected this month even though the Blues have just pocketed £10million from the sale of England full-back Wayne Bridge.

Ferguson is not ready to write Chelsea off just yet though, claiming Luiz Felipe Scolari could easily return home to unearth a Brazilian gem.

In any event, the United boss is not really interested in what Chelsea do.

He gave up worrying about them a long time ago, knowing it was virtually impossible for the Red Devils to match their rivals financially.

"You can only do what you think is best for your club and our philosophy was to build a team that could last for years," said Ferguson.

"It required a bit of patience.

"Chelsea were doing it in a different way but we could not match their spending power so we had to identify young players who could be top players at this club."

Ferguson's plan has worked. Of the 24 players he will select from on Sunday only the three old stagers - Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville - will be missing because of age in five years' time.

Even Rio Ferdinand will be only 35 as he patrols the United defence.

"There are no cracks," he said.

"That was the plan. It was the long-term view."

Ferguson must have been chuckling when he heard of Rafael Benitez's rant at him this afternoon, believing the pressure of a sustained title challenge is getting to the Spaniard already with 2009 less than two weeks old.

Not that the Scot was entirely happy himself as he was confronted by yet more questions on Carlos Tevez's contract and the South American's outspoken comments earlier this week.

"I have no thoughts on what Carlos Tevez has said," grumbled Ferguson.

"I have nothing to say.

"I am not going to comment on players' contracts. It is a private matter between the club and player. I am not getting into it at all. When a player signs we will let you know."