Ferguson feels the latter is unlikely and he believes the race will not be decided until next weekend when United face Manchester City at Old Trafford.

This is the scenario every United fan is dreaming of and Ferguson is anxious that his players do not let the issue drag on beyond then.

"I must say I don’t expect to win it tomorrow," said the United manager.

"People are asking that question 'what happens if you win it tomorrow'. But I don’t expect to win it tomorrow.

"I think we will have to wait until next Saturday.

"The important thing is that this is a great opportunity and we should not miss these opportunities.

"I made the point before the Charlton game on Tuesday that we have three home games and we must win them all.

"I don’t think that’s a big order and with our form at home we should win these matches.

"If we win our next two matches, we will win the title and that’s the way we’re looking at it. We need to win these home matches."

Ferguson has another reason for wanting to beat Coventry tomorrow and he feels that would be a great boost ahead of United’s biggest match of the season against Bayern Munich on Wednesday.

United must overturn a 1-0 deficit in the Olympic Stadium from the first leg and Ferguson knows a win over the Sky Blues would top up his side’s confidence.

He also wants to see his side return to winning ways following their back-to-back defeats against Liverpool and Bayern.

"Obviously we want to get through tomorrow first and it’s important to keep the momentum going," he said.

"We want to get into winning form and that’s the first thing you try to do when you lose some matches.

"When you lose a couple of games, the secret is to try and get back to winning form.

"A win tomorrow would put a completely different complexion on our visit to Bayern.

"We would be going in against them strong and ready for a difficult game."

Ferguson will welcome back Jaap Stam for the noon showdown with Coventry and the Dutch international has recovered from his groin injury.

Gary Neville will move across to right-back to accommodate the return of Stam.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could well start after he came off the bench to score the winner against Charlton on Tuesday, while David Beckham is likely to be named among the substitutes again.

Definitely out is Denis Irwin, although Ferguson claimed the Irishman could be back in action within 10 days.

Irwin was stretchered off with a knee injury near the end of the Charlton game, prompting speculation that he may not play again this season.

However Ferguson claims he will return in the next 10 to 14 days at most.

"I think it will be 10 days," he said. "Denis thinks seven days, but I’ve spoken to our physio Robert Swire and he thinks 10 days, no more than two weeks."