You can forget London, ignore Liverpool and disregard Birmingham. For Manchester is now the football capital of England as surely as night follows day.

And that’s not just an empty boast from an over-proud Manc. It’s not rocket science, either, when you think about it.

In the Red half of town sits the most successful club in the history of the Premier League. In the Blue half is the richest club in the history of the Premier League.

What more proof do you need to accept that Manchester now holds the reins of this country's top-flight football.

So what does the immediate future have in store for the age-old rivals from Old Trafford and Eastlands? Which will be the top dog when the trophies are being dished out come next spring.

And what waits ahead for respective managers Sir Alex Ferguson and Roberto Mancini?

The rumour mill is already speculating that after a quarter of a century at the helm this may be Fergie’s last season in charge at the Theatre of Dreams. He is, after all, only 16 months away from his 70th birthday.

My first guess is that if the Reds regain the Premier League crown and/or win the Champions League, there is a 50 per cent chance that the old fire-breather will clear his desk and ride off into the sunset for the last time.

My second guess is that if this season yields only the meaningless Community Shield for United, there is no chance of Fergie calling it a day – barring for health reasons.

Sir Alex Ferguson quitting as a loser? Not a chance in a million. When the Fiery One does bow out, he’ll bow out on top.

And from the limited evidence we’ve gleaned so far, I can see no reason why the Reds won’t be challenging for major honours on all fronts when the season reaches the critical stage in March and April next year.

Much, of course, will depend on the fitness and stamina of Paul Scholes. We’ve seen in the Community Shield against Chelsea and the opening Premier League match against Newcastle that Scholes’ football brain is as razor-sharp as ever.

But can his 35-year-old body withstand another gruelling season in domestic and European football? Only time will provide the answer to that question.

Fergie burden

Or will Fergie ease the burden on his master playmaker by relying on his young guns to wrestle the Premier League crown out of Chelsea's hands?

Remember he’s been told before by a certain TV pundit that you win nothing with kids. That was when the likes of Beckham, the Nevilles, Giggs and Scholes grew from boys into men in the space of one season.

Will Hernandez, Smalling, Macheda and the Da Silva twins tread the same path this season? Why not? If anyone can order lightning to strike twice in the same place, then it’s Old Trafford’s Scottish knight.

With or without Scholes as a permanent fixture, write off United’s title chances this season at your peril. In my book any team which is ahead of the Reds at the end of the season will be crowned champions of England.

Will Ferguson’s “noisy neighbours” from Eastlands be the team which finishes above United this season? My heart says “yes” but my mind tells me “no.”

The Blessed Blues right now are like Coronation Street with s a drama around every corner. Who's coming? Who's going? Who's going to be ditched? Will it all end in tears?

Take the arrival of James Milner coupled with  the departures of Stevie Ireland and Craig Bellamy.

However, there are a couple of English phrases which Bobby Manc might like to consider and act upon. The first is “softly, softly, catchee monkey” and the second is “don’t run before you’ve learned to walk.”

City will win the Premier League in the future. That isn’t a guess. That is an inevitability.

But Rome wasn’t built in a day. Mancini claims that it will take three weeks for his players to knit together. On the strength of his side’s display in the opening match at Spurs, I would suggest it will take three months.

Don’t be in such a rush, Roberto. If Sheikh Mansour and his pals have patience, your day and your team's day will come – and soon.

For starters, a Champions League place this season will do nicely. Next stop the Premier League. The stop after that, the Champions League.

So far we’ve looked at Manchester as the football capital of England. But what about Greater Manchester? Why do so many football people move into the area but never leave when their playing days are over? Because Greater Manchester is a football paradise.

Bolton and Wigan are unlikely to set the Premier League on fire this season. But they have managers in Owen Coyle and Roberto Martinez who insist their teams play football the way football is meant to be played.

Yes, both teams will get a good hiding from time to time as Wigan did against Blackpool on the opening day. But Coyle and Martinez represent everything which is good about the game and it will be the Premier League’s loss if either of those clubs drop through the relegation trapdoor this season.

Look at Oldham sitting proudly on top of League One.

The last time the Latics enjoyed any meaningful success was under Joe Royle, a former striker in his first spell in management.

Now they have Paul Dickov in charge – a former striker in his first spell in management. Could it happen all over again?

Bury, under the astute Alan Knill, are hoping to go one better and clinch promotion after coming so close last season.

Rochdale, led by the inspirational Keith Hill, are taking to League One like a duck to water while Stockport are showing signs of a revival under former City favourite Paul Simpson.

Manchester the town and Greater Manchester the district. As a football fan, who would want to live anywhere else?