TV VIEW:EVEN BY the time events were done and dusted in Newcastle, Sky Sports' Ed Chamberlin was still wondering if there might be a twist in the title race yet, showing Gary Neville a list of gargantuan United wins going back to their 9-0 triumph over Ipswich last century. Some of us remember that game quite well, largely those of us who had Ipswich goalkeeper Craig Forrest in their fantasy football team.

“Clutching at straws comes to mind,” said Neville, Chamberlin (we’re still talking Gary and Ed here, not the British second World War prime minister) left a bit deflated, the prospect of Sky having its most super-sized Sunday ever next weekend diminishing a touch. It’ll still be monumental, just not as astronomically monumental as they’d hoped.

Jamie Redknapp was struggling, too, to envisage, say, a 16-2 win for United over Swansea, although when he appeared on Goals on Sunday earlier in the day he had a hunch that Newcastle would deny their visitors victory, making the Old Trafford contest, well, astronomically monumental. If they didn’t, United v Swansea would have all the atmosphere of a World Cup third-place play-off.

“That’s incredible, isn’t it? The scenarios that might happen, that could happen, that should happen: we won’t know that until the end of the results, so we have no idea what you’re going to be facing and what type of game you’re going to have,” said Chris Kamara.

“Eh, yeah,” said Jamie, looking almost as befuddled as the moment he heard the FA were appointing Roy ‘Odgson as England boss.

Half-time at Newcastle, 0-0. Neville suggested that Roberto Mancini would bring on Nigel de Jong, allowing Toure to play in a more advanced position, thereby become something of a goal threat.

Second half. Roberto Mancini brought on Nigel de Jong, allowing Toure to play in a more advanced position, thereby become something of a goal threat. How much of a goal threat? Just the two.

And Niall Quinn, again on duty in the Sky commentary box, greeted Toure’s goals with an admirable level of impartiality:

“YesssSSSSSsssssssss!!! WhooOOOooo, hoOOooooooo!!!! WhoooAAaah!!!! Haaaa haaa!!! Nobby Stiles! Duncan Edwards! Ralph Milne! Mike Duxbury! Eric Cantona! Nicky Butt! Paddy Crerand! Alex Ferguson – can you hear me, Alex Ferguson? Your boys took one hell of a beating!”

(Legal department: The above was made up. Well, just a bit).

The camera picked out City legend Mike Summerbee in the crowd. Possibly for the first time ever, he had something in common with his United brethren: he was bawling. It was an emotional day.

Sometime later, over at Old Trafford, the Swansea faithful were commiserating with their hosts (“Premier League? You’re having a laugh!”), who, nonetheless, went in search of an avalanche of goals. In the end they managed just the two snowflakes.

Afterwards, Alex Ferguson addressed the crowd, many of whom had left. “Hopefully next weekend it’ll be the biggest celebration of our lives,” he said, before remembering City have QPR at home, at which point he seemed Comical Ali-ish.

But look, you just never know. “It could be a Devon Loch – I’ve seen stranger things happen in this game of football,” he told Jeff, before Jeff almost congratulated him on his silver medal.

We shouldn’t forget, though, that it was also FA Cup final weekend, the Wembley showpiece contested between . . . between . . . two top sides.

ESPN’s build-up was on the moderate side, only starting in or around 10 hours before the game, roughly eight longer than ITV’s. By the end of it Kevin Keegan had the look of Methuselah.

Back on ITV, Roy Keane reminisced fondly about his chat with then Blackburn boss Kenny Dalglish when he informed the Scot that he was backing out of an agreement to sign for the Ewood Park XI, instead opting to join United. Dalglish, he said, threatened to have him followed on his holidays in Ayia Napa. Adrian Chiles opted for an ad break, just to give the ITV legal department time to prepare the company’s defence.

Match time. 1-0 Chelsea, 2-0 Chelsea, 2-1 Chelsea, 2-2. No, wait, disallowed. Andy Carroll? Gutted. Although that banner might have lifted his spirits: “Worst hair since Venison, best head since Toshack”. “Man of the Match time,” Clive Tyldesley said to Andy Townsend. Andy was struggling, but, in the end, opted for Juan Mata. Just seconds before he was taken off. Hate that.

Didier Drogba was, not for the first time, slightly heroic for Chelsea. “He’s just a big loveable lump, isn’t he?” said Clive. “Graham Norton seemed to get inside him last night.”

You know, it’s not often Andy is left speechless.