Sir Alex Ferguson has hailed the five-team scrap for this season's title "the dream league".

Dropped points for Manchester United and Arsenal this week have offered Chelsea and Tottenham a way back into a race that had appeared beyond them.

With Manchester City also bang in contention, it is shaping up to be a compelling championship battle that may not do much for the heart rates of those involved but will only heighten the interest which surrounds the Premier League worldwide.

"It is there for everyone to win or lose," he said.

"So many times over the last few years, people have spoken about the top four when there has been one of those periods where we are all within a couple of points of each other and said this could be a really exciting league.

"But by the end of the year, two teams are contesting it.

"That could happen again this season but on the other hand, if it were to be five or six involved right until the end, it would be fantastic for the league.

"It is the kind of league we dream of."

The staggering nature of this season's competition is certainly at odds with La Liga, which is often held up as the most obvious challenger to the Premier League's popularity.

"In every set of games this season, you see a surprise result," he said.

"We were disappointed to lose a late goal at Birmingham on Tuesday, then the next day Arsenal drop two points against a Wigan team with 10 men and Wolves go to Anfield and win.

"You are going to see a lot of these results because it is such a tough league.

"There are five or six teams challenging at the top of the league at the moment but if you look at other countries, Barcelona and Real Madrid are normally challenging for the Spanish league, it's Bayern Munich and one other in Germany and in the Italian league it is Milan or Juventus.

"That is why it is so exciting."