The two outstretched fingers on each hand were not intended to signify V for victory, but as Sir Alex Ferguson gestured to his players that Chelsea were being held to a 2-2 draw by Bolton Wanderers and then followed up with a theatrical “cut” gesture to indicate full time at Stamford Bridge, they might as well have done.

This, after 90 minutes during which the Barclays Premiership title pendulum had swung one way and then decisively the other, was the moment that Ferguson knew that Manchester United’s dream was close to being realised. His players have enjoyed some fervent celebrations after smash-and-grab victories at Craven Cottage and at Anfield in the past eight weeks, but this time, as they sang “We want our trophy back” in the dressing-room, there was also the knowledge that they were almost there.

Only the most one-eyed Chelsea devotee could deny that United deserve to have “their trophy” back. Not only have they played the best football this season, scoring 82 goals (20 more than Chelsea) in 35 league matches and a further 40 in cup competitions, they have also shown the character that is required by any team with title ambitions. Falling behind against Fulham, Blackburn Rovers and, on this occasion, Everton, their response has been that of true champions — and never more so than on Saturday, when, after 50 minutes, trailing to Alan Stubbs’s deflected free kick and a spectacular strike by Manuel Fernandes, they seemed to be down and out.

It required a sizeable slice of luck to get United back into the match. They were handed a lifeline on the hour by the failure of Iain Turner, the young Everton reserve goalkeeper, to catch Ryan Giggs’s corner, but from the moment John O’Shea converted the loose ball, prompting Ferguson to send on a half-fit Cristiano Ronaldo, their victory seemed inevitable.

Within 17 minutes, with Everton engulfed by a red tide, Phil Neville, of all people, had prodded an attempted clearance in his own net and Wayne Rooney, their outstanding player on the day, had scored to turn a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead, one that was extended in the final seconds by Chris Eagles, a 21-year-old who would have been nowhere near the squad but for injuries to numerous senior players.

As against AC Milan in the Champions League semi-finals, first leg four days earlier, it was a thrilling fightback, albeit one aided by Everton’s self-destructive tendencies. Conspiracy theorists at Stamford Bridge — although not José Mourinho, unusually — will talk about Neville’s role in helping his former club, but the Everton captain was in no mood for such jokes. “Gutted,” he said as he reflected on his own goal in the 67th minute.

Neville suggested that United had been “jammy” because of the fortuitous nature of at least two of their goals, but he added that they “will be worthy champions. The best team always wins the league.”

The only doubts concern United’s prospects in European competition, particularly if Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic are not fit for the second leg against Milan on Wednesday. With Gary Neville ruled out and Patrice Evra suspended, the worry is that Ferguson will be without his first-choice back four. Wes Brown and Gabriel Heinze recovered after an uncertain start to dominate against Everton, but, given the worries that James Vaughan caused them in the opening half-hour on Saturday, the damage that Kaká and Filippo Inzaghi might do on Wednesday hardly bears thinking about it.

Ferdinand and Vidic will be assessed today, but Ferguson might be willing to take a gamble on Ferdinand. Their experiences against Milan last week and Everton on Saturday tell you that United will have to do it the hard way if they are to succeed in the San Siro, but with Ferguson’s players feeling unbeatable and with Rooney in form after eight goals in as many matches, it would take a brave man to bet against them.