Sir Alex Ferguson was gracious in defeat as Chelsea relieved Manchester United of the Premier League title by one point. United's title rivals beat Wigan Athletic 8-0 at home, to render academic the Reds' own emphatic victory, 4-0 over Stoke City at Old Trafford.
"I didn't know what the Chelsea score was [during the second half] to be honest. But at half-time I accepted the fact they were going to be champions," Sir Alex told MUTV.
"We felt it would be difficult for Wigan to get something at Stamford Bridge and when we heard they were down to ten men, all our hopes evaporated then," admitted Sir Alex.
"We applaud Chelsea in winning the title. We know hard it is to win it - it's the hardest league in the world and we've won it for the last three years. I congratulate Carlo Ancelotti on a wonderful achievement. He's a good manager and a good guy."
Sir Alex will swiftly turn his thoughts to challenging Chelsea for the 2010/11 championship.
"We won the last three titles before this one. That was fantastic and the players have been great. We'll come back next year, that's exactly what Manchester United do."
