Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has praised Roberto Mancini for Manchester City's "outstanding" season.

The blue half of Manchester are expected to snatch the Premier League title from the Red Devils if they can secure three points against Queens Park Rangers this Saturday.

Ferguson believes that Man City's dominance in this season's campaign is similar to that of Jose Mourinho's tenure at Chelsea.

"We had to contend with Jose's management style, which was very effective," ESPN quotes Ferguson as saying. "He did a fantastic job [at Chelsea]. You knew you were competing against a very clever manager. You weren't just facing the money, you were facing a very united squad.

"They were hard to beat. City are very similar to Chelsea at that time. Some of their players have had outstanding seasons.

"When you win the league you need five or six players who are consistently good all the time. City have had that this year and the manager, for most of the part, has done well."

United will go up against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light for their final match of the league season.