With the heat rising in one of the most intense Premier League title run-ins in history, the teams involved have added fuel to the fire by labeling each other’s actions as desperate, in a bit to unsettle their rivals.

Many have tried to take on Sir Alex Ferguson during his time dominating the Premier League era, perhaps most notably Rafael Benitez back in 2009.

The then Liverpool manager famously pulled out a piece of paper during a press conference listing ‘facts’ about how United and Sir Alex Ferguson are given an unfair advantage by officials. It is fair to say the affair didn’t have the outcome Benitez had hoped for, as United secured their eighteenth league title, equalling the record set by Liverpool themselves.

This week it was the turn of Manchester City, and their manager Football Development Executive Patrick Vieira. The former midfielder suggested that by bringing veteran midfielder Paul Scholes was an act of desperation by the champions. This criticism was laughed off by the Manchester United manager.

“If its desperation bringing back the best midfielder in Britain for the past 20 years then I think we can accept that”, said Ferguson, before adding that playing someone who was only a few months ago banished by the manager was perhaps a better example of desperation.

As he so often has been over the years, Ferguson was right, certainly regarding the case of Paul Scholes. Since his return, United are unbeaten in the nine league games in which he has featured. The midfield has made a key contribution in that run, even scoring two goals. Inevitably, talk has arisen regarding the possibility of a return to the England team after an eight year exile.

Bodog are offering odds of 11.0 (10/1) for Paul Scholes to be named Manchester United player of the season. Yes, he will have only featured for half of the campaign, but it is during that half that United have gone from being relative outsiders to odds on favourites to secure their twentieth league title.

If they manage it, an awful lot of the credit will have to go to Scholes, and to Ferguson for being astute enough to usurp us all by bringing him back.