He told The Sun: “This team will get better.
“And if they stay together it will give them a real chance.
“I expect Arsenal and Liverpool to add to their squads and, certainly, Chelsea — and then it starts over with nerve-racking games again.”
He continued: “I think, for us, it is the club’s greatest achievement because it is a relatively new team who have achieved this at their first attempt.
“I did think it was going to be a difficult task, given Chelsea’s spending power.
“But they have been the opponents over the years with the most resilience, there is no question about that. Both teams gave their very last drop.”
He added: “We had to make big important decisions about how we changed the team. That’s not easy.
“You grow a familiarity with players like Phil Neville and Nicky Butt and it’s sad when you have to let them go.
“Roy Keane was certainly difficult. He had been such a big influence on the club.
“They are great guys and were as important as anybody.
“It’s not easy to identify when you need to make changes and it’s even harder to actually make them. You have to say to yourself, ‘Maybe they can give me one more year’.
“But that’s what decision-making is about. You have to feel you are not managing for yourself but for the club. That’s why important decisions are taken.
“If it was personal, they would still be here. But you have to try and construct a team that is fresh all the time.”
