Updated: May 12, 2008, 5:48 AM EST 1542 comments

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Chelsea, which went into its final game even on points with United but way behind on goal difference, was held to a 1-1 draw by Bolton and wound up two points behind in an anticlimactic finish.

While Alex Ferguson celebrated his 21st trophy in 22 years at Old Trafford, Chelsea finished runner-up for the second straight season. But the team will get a chance to bounce back when it plays United in the Champions League final on May 21 in Moscow.

Lower down the standings, third-place Arsenal, despite its five-point lead in February and attractive style of play, failed to win a trophy for the third season in a row. Fourth-place Liverpool still aren't close to winning a first league title since 1990 after finishing 11 points behind.

United won with 87 points and Chelsea had 85, which was still the closest finish since United edged Arsenal by one point in 1999.

Now, 17-time English champion United is chasing Liverpool's all-time record of 18 league titles.

"I think it will come," said United manager Alex Ferguson, who has 21 individual trophies to his name in 22 seasons at Old Trafford. "This team is developing all the time. It's a good young team and there's plenty of years left in them."

Ferguson will get a chance at another trophy on May 21 in the Champions League final against Chelsea in Moscow.

"The great thing is we're bouncing in to the (Champions League) final," Ferguson said.

Chelsea manager Avram Grant said his team got close but not close enough.

"We wanted very much to win the league, but it was never, ever even for one minute in our hands," Grant said. "Even today, when it was 1-0.

"You cannot say it was disappointing because we were never in first place to lose it, so we need to be very proud of what we did this year."

Arsenal finished the season four points behind United but effectively lost out after a 2-1 defeat to the defending champions left it nine points back.

"I feel quality-wise we have been remarkable the whole season," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said after his team finished with a 1-0 victory at Sunderland. "I have never had a team that has consistently produced quality games like this team.

"This year, the Premier League, for maybe the first time in the last four or five years, was exciting until the last day of the season, and we have contributed to that."

Theo Walcott scored Arsenal's only goal in the 24th minute.

At the other end, Birmingham and Reading were relegated despite winning with four-goal performances. Birmingham beat Blackburn 4-1 and Reading defeated last-place Derby 4-0. But Fulham survived after a 1-0 victory at FA Cup finalist Portsmouth on Danny Murphy's 76th-minute goal.

"I am delighted we did it but, at the same time, I can't help but think how close we were to going down and how sad it must be for Reading and Birmingham today," said Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, whose team won four of last five games. "In all the jubilation, I must say we were not that far away from it being us and not them, so they have all my sympathy tonight."

The most stunning result of the final day was Manchester City's 8-1 loss at Middlesbrough in what could be Sven-Goran Eriksson's final game as City manager. After Afonso Alves scored three times for Boro, Eriksson's future is in doubt after failing to get City into European competition next season after a ninth-place finish.

Eriksson, who has been in charge for one season, said he soon expected to hear about his future from the club's owner, former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

"To live in the unsecure is never good for anyone but I hope to not be living in the unsecure very soon, within hours," the Swede said. "I expect to speak to people - or they speak to me - from the owner's side, people in the club who work daily within the club."

Liverpool won at Tottenham 2-0 with goals by Andriy Voronin and Fernando Torres, who finished the season with 24 in the league.