Why Manchester United Will Win the EPL

The Premier League season is almost half finished, and once again Manchester United are on top of the table as things are starting to get interesting.

The Red Devils are five points ahead of cross-town rival Manchester City and looking back at the first half of the season there are a variety of reasons that would indicate that this is going to be United's year.

The Red Devils Are Scoring at a Near Record-Breaking Pace

Manchester United have 57 goals in just 23 games, which is 10 more than Chelsea, the second-highest scoring team in the league. United's great form is in large part due to Robin van Persie, the league's top scorer with 18 goals. However, even if you take away Van Persie's contributions, United are still left with 39.That is just one goal less than fourth-placedTottenham.

United's goal-scoring average for the season so far is 2.48, which is not quite as high as Chelsea's 2.71 record average from 2009/10 but impressive nonetheless.

United can count on their whole squad to contribute on the attacking side. Just take a look at the whole list of players with at least one Premier League goal this season, which includes defenders and strikers alike.   

Manchester United Are Resilient

Manchester United would never be on top of the table if it wasn't for their ability to come from behind and squeeze out a win in stoppage time. Even though United conceded a late goal against Spurs in uncharacteristic fashion on Monday, the Red Devils have established a tradition of late comebacks during Sir Alex Ferguson's tenure.

This season, Manchester United have taken "Fergie time" to the extreme. On Boxing Day, United scored four goals against Newcastle but never took the lead until Javier Hernandez scored the winning goal in stoppage time.

Although, the most satisfying example for United fans must have been Van Persie's free kick against Manchester City two minutes into stoppage time to give United the victory.  

...and Their Rivals Are Not

Manchester United have taken advantage of every mistake made by their Premier League rivals, and there have been quite a few.

Liverpool and Arsenal are hopelessly behind with just 34 points each and pose no threat to United's title hopes whatsoever. 

The same can possibly be said for Chelsea, who will have to perform some kind of miracle to make up for the 11-point gap. Chelsea's season was wrecked during a poor November-stretch that saw the team lose to West Bromwich and fail to win easy matchups against Swansea and Fulham.

That leaves only Manchester City, who are still in the hunt for the title. The Citizens have actually only lost two games while United have lost three, and City would have been able to close the gap had they not tied against the likes of West Ham and Stoke.

Fergie Is Not Going to Lose to City Twice in a Row

Losing the Premier League title to Manchester City on the last day of the season was probably the worst moment of Sir Alex Ferguson's career.

Ferguson has single-handedly made United into the premier dynasty in English soccer, and as it's looking more and more like he's going to retire at the end of the season, his desire to leave with a title must be greater than ever.

Let us also not forget that last time United suffered a title loss anywhere near as bitter as last year's was in 1997/98. The following year, Ferguson and the Red Devils wreaked havoc on the soccer world and won The Treble.