Friedel red card overturned

Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel has had the red card he received in Sunday's defeat at Liverpool rescinded by the Football Association.

The American was sent off after 63 minutes of the 5-0 drubbing at Anfield after he was adjudged have brought down Fernando Torres after the striker burst through on goal.

Villa's appeal was upheld on Tuesday, meaning Friedel will be available for their next Barclays Premier League game at Manchester United on April 5.

The news is a boost for Martin O'Neill's men, whose bid to finish in a Champions League place has faltered in recent weeks.

They are currently fifth, three points behind fourth-placed Arsenal.

McCartney red card rescinded

Sunderland full-back George McCartney has had the red card he received in Sunday's defeat at Manchester City rescinded by the Football Association.

The Northern Ireland international was sent off after just 15 minutes at Eastlands with referee Steve Tanner, after consultation with his assistant Mo Matadar, adjudging McCartney to have pulled back Shaun Wright-Phillips when the City winger burst through on goal.

Contact appeared minimal, prompting the Wearsiders to launch an appeal, which has subsequently proved successful.

Had the dismissal been upheld McCartney would have missed out on a return to his former club West Ham. But he will now be free to play at Upton Park on April 4.

Liverpool 5 - 0 Aston Villa

Liverpool are breathing down Manchester United's necks in the Barclays Premier League title race after destroying fifth-placed Aston Villa 5-0.

It was the third stunning Liverpool victory in 12 days, having previously put four past Real Madrid and Manchester United.

The champions' lead is now one point - they also have a game in hand - but Liverpool have now scored more goals than Sir Alex Ferguson's men and have also wiped out their goal-difference advantage.

Villa had no answer to a side with a driven desire to take the title from under United's noses.

Steven Gerrard scored a hat-trick with a free-kick and two penalties, with the latter one following the dismissal of goalkeeper Brad Friedel for bringing down Reds striker Fernando Torres.

In the first-half Dirk Kuyt and Albert Riera had scored, before Gerrard took over with his set-piece onslaught.

Liverpool had Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa back from respective ankle and hamstring injuries that ruled them out of last weekend's win at Manchester United, with Sami Hyypia and Lucas relegated to the bench.

They were joined there by defender Daniel Agger, who has only played one game since mid-December after a variety of injury problems.

Villa boss Martin O'Neill left out striker Gabriel Agbonlahor, who has scored only twice since before Christmas and was booed by his club's own fans last weekend. Defender Zat Knight was also on the bench, with John Carew and Curtis Davies back in the side.

There was still a solemn start to the proceedings, with a minute's silence following the death yesterday of 56-year-old club secretary Bryce Morrison, after he had flown back from the Champions League draw in Switzerland.

Morrison, who had worked at Anfield for 17 years, suffered a heart attack at home. Both teams wore black armbands.

The game got off to a blistering start, and after eight minutes Liverpool were ahead.

Alonso's header from Gerrard's free-kick cracked against the bar, and Dirk Kuyt reacted quickest to blast the ball home from 12 yards.

At the other end Ashley Young's cross arrowed in from the left and Carew's flick at the near post almost caught out Jose Reina - but the goalkeeper tipped the ball over the angle.

The contest was ferocious, and Gerrard was then rightly booked for a fierce, late, challenge on Davies.

Then Reina made another outstanding save to his left to claw away a towering header from Carew - who played under Benitez at Valencia.

Liverpool were relentless and after 33 minutes they claimed a second goal.

Reina's 80-yard clearance was allowed to bounce once on the edge of the area by a Villa defence pre-occupied with Torres and Riera took full advantage by smashing the dropping ball high into the net.

It could have been three when Arbeloa intercepted a bad Friedel clearance inside the Villa box, but he chose to pass to Torres rather than shooting himself.

But the third was not long coming. After 39 minutes Riera controlled a searching crossfield pass from Kuyt, and was brought down in the box by Nigel Reo-Coker. Gerrard smashed home the spot-kick.

Any thoughts of a Villa revival were crushed after 50 minutes when Carlos Cuellar brought down Kuyt on the edge of the box and Gerrard drilled the free-kick low to Friedel's left and into the bottom corner.

Former Reds striker Emile Heskey had a header held by Reina, but was by now being employed on the left trying to halt Arbeloa and Kuyt's flow down the flank - with Young switched to a central attacking role.

The ploy did not last long - Agbonlahor replaced Heskey after 58 minutes, with Young back on the line- but things got worse for Villa after 63 minutes when Friedel was dismissed for clashing with Torres and Gerrard drilled home the fifth past Villa's reserve keeper Brad Guzan.

Lucas, Agger and David Ngog replaced Alonso, Arbeloa and Gerrard in the closing minutes of a comprehensive victory.

Man City 1 - 0 Sunderland

Sunderland remain in the thick of the desperate struggle to escape relegation from the Barclays Premier League after the bravery of their 10 men went unrewarded in a 1-0 defeat to Manchester City.

Micah Richards' second-half header proved enough, with goalkeeper Marton Fulop preventing City increasing their advantage with a string of fine saves near the end in addition to a Robinho penalty save.

But try as Sunderland might, they were always in trouble once George McCartney had been red carded for a professional foul on Shaun Wright-Phillips after just 15 minutes.

And, just three points above local rivals Newcastle, who occupy that nightmare spot of third bottom, the Black Cats are certainly in need of some good fortune.

The dogfight at the bottom has been so tight for so long, Sunderland have always felt they were in the thick of it.

Nevertheless, they adopted a refreshingly offensive approach, based around the tireless work of Kenwyne Jones, hoping to profit from an injury-hit City side lacking Stephen Ireland and Wayne Bridge.

Just to reinforce the feeling of change, Valeri Bojinov was also included in a Blues starting line-up for the first time since August 2007, the intervening period filled with injury and misery for the Bulgarian, once the youngest foreigner ever to star in Serie A.

Bojinov made a pleasing contribution in an open encounter before the whole dynamic of the game was changed in a mad three-minute spell as the quarter of an hour mark was reached.

Wright-Phillips had definitely got in front of McCartney in the chase to reach Elano's through ball. There was little doubt either the England winger would have been clean through.

Of more debate, certainly as far as Sunderland were concerned was the strength of the contact that forced Wright-Phillips to pull up as Fulop came to collect.

Referee Steve Tanner felt it was enough to merit a foul. It took assistant Mo Matadar to confirm the need for a red card.

Although Bojinov curled the free-kick over, City were presented with an even better opportunity to exploit their extra man on their next attack when Steed Malbranque upended Micah Richards, who had burst forward on the overlap.

For a player of Robinho's class, confidence should not be a problem in such situations.

But his trademark shuffle as he strode up, put doubt only in his mind. The shot that followed was weak and Fulop, a conclusive winner of that mind-game battle, made the easiest of saves.

After such a frenzy of incident, the game took a bit of time to draw breath. Yet Sunderland were not content just to sit back and soak up pressure.

If Jones' admirable industry had been matched by a bit more precision from his team-mates, the Black Cats might have presented their hosts with a stern examination.

Instead, City carried most of the attacking threat even if, aside from Robinho's penalty, they created nothing better against 10 men than they had done when Wright-Phillips had ended a splendid one touch move by lobbing narrowly wide when Sunderland still had the full compliment on the field.

The onus was clearly on the hosts to attack and Richards decided it was time to take centre stage.

Good enough to become the youngest defender in England history and win 11 caps during Steve McClaren's ill-fated reign, Richards has lost his way over the past 18 months, so much so that thoughts of going to a World Cup under Fabio Capello seem pretty remote.

But the defender is still only 20 and now slotted back into the right-back position McClaren used to favour, the youngster roared forward with gusto, as if Sunderland were the team to take all his frustration out on.

Opportunities created for Wright-Phillips and Elano were both squandered - the former woefully, the latter agonisingly as a delicate flick rolled wide - so it was just as well Richards had found the net himself, rising to guide Elano's free-kick over the line just before Robinho could prod home.

It was his first goal for two-and-a-half seasons and only the third of a career that was launched with an 'F-word reaction' to a last minute FA Cup equaliser in only his fourth game at Aston Villa in February 2006.

Unfortunately for Richards, his day ended early as he limped off with what appeared to be a hamstring injury, which cast a cloud on an otherwise impressive day.

Wigan 1 - 0 Hull City

Midfielder Ben Watson scored the only goal as Wigan wasted a host of chances yet still beat struggling Hull 1-0 at the JJB Stadium.

It appeared the Latics were heading for their seventh blank in 10 Barclays Premier League matches, after Mido and Hugo Rodallega had twice each squandered opportunities.

But Watson, signed from Crystal Palace in January, scored his second goal in a week with a looping 84th-minute volley.

It ended Wigan's run of back-to-back goalless home games and re-ignited hopes of qualifying for Europe next season as they moved up to seventh.

Hull are still in trouble near the foot of the table, just four points above the relegation zone and with only one win in their last 14 matches.

The pattern of play was established in the second minute when Charles N'Zogbia's long-range cross-shot had Matt Duke back-pedalling - and he only just managed to tip the ball over with the help of the bar and post.

When Dean Marney was robbed by Michael Brown from a Hull corner Wigan launched a swift counter-attack which saw N'Zogbia drill a pass across the six-yard area, the fingertips of Duke preventing Watson getting a touch.

Watson also forced Duke into a low save with a 25-yard shot in the 12th minute. Mido was next to squander a chance after Rodallega and Paul Scharner, making his 100th Premier League appearance, had exchanged quick passes to bypass the Hull midfield.

Scharner won a free-kick 20 yards out when Sam Ricketts pulled him down - a foul for which he was booked - but Rodallega curled his shot straight at Duke.

Mido fired over again from six yards after Scharner had out-jumped the defence to head Maynor Figueroa's long ball down to Rodallega.

The Colombia striker should have done better moments later, having raced on to Scharner's through ball with only the goalkeeper to beat - but Duke half-saved and then turned Scharner's follow-up for a corner.

Hull were forced to make a substitution in the 38th minute when the injured Andy Dawson was replaced by Richard Garcia.

It meant a reshuffle - with Ricketts switching sides, Bernard Mendy dropping to right-back and Garcia playing in front of him.

Mendy's first act as a defender was to be booked for a waist-high challenge on N'Zogbia in the centre-circle.

The Wigan midfielder was forced off after a crunching challenge with Kamil Zayatte in first-half injury time and was replaced after the interval by Daniel de Ridder.

Having spent long periods with little to do, Wigan goalkeeper Chris Kirkland had to be alert to tip over Manucho's flashed header from Marney's 50th-minute corner.

Titus Bramble dived in at Garcia on the edge of the penalty area and was booked. But Wigan managed to clear former Wigan midfielder Kevin Kilbane's inswinging free-kick, before Craig Fagan was then cautioned for an unnecessary challenge on De Ridder.

Zayatte lasted just 15 minutes of the second half before being replaced by another Wigan old boy Caleb Folan, resulting in another defensive reshuffle.

Yet another chance went begging when Watson drilled a shot into the side-netting from the left corner of the penalty area - before substitute Amr Zaki rose highest in a crowd to head De Ridder's cross against the foot of a post with Duke beaten.

But the goal finally came in the 84th minute, partly thanks to a mistake from Duke.

The goalkeeper's weak punch did not get out of the penalty area - and when the ball dropped Watson looped a volley over Duke and in at the far post, despite Kilbane's best efforts to keep it out.

It was the former Crystal Palace midfielder's second goal in a week, after opening his account scoring in the 2-1 victory at Sunderland, and could not have come at a more timely moment with Wigan looking to have run out of ideas.

Match-winner Ben Watson believes Wigan's last gasp victory over Hull was just reward for a dominant team performance.

Watson scored his second goal in a week with a looping 84th-minute volley to end Wigan's run of back-to-back goalless home games and reignite their hopes of qualifying for Europe next season as they moved up to seventh in the Barclays Premier League.

But for long periods it had looked as if Steve Bruce's side might draw yet another blank after squandering a number of opportunities against the Tigers.

Watson said: "We had so many chances in the first half but we dug in and kept going and we got our reward.

"I should have got one in the first minute I think but it went straight through my legs, and then there was another one in the second half.

"But I think we dominated from the first whistle to the last whistle and we carried on, kept going and got our reward."

Watson said the squad had not let thoughts of Europe distract them from their main aim of staying in the Premier League.

He added on Sky Sports News: "We've not spoken about it, the main thing is staying in this division. We're taking it one game at a time and looking forward to the Everton game now."

Newcastle 1 - 3 Arsenal

Toon in the dumps but Wenger's happy again

Arsene Wenger began and ended the evening with that famous sardonic smile; one which would not be out of place should it be captured in oils and hung alongside the Mona Lisa.

The Arsenal manager popped into the press room before the game to monitor the afternoon results. Just to be sure Manchester United had lost at Fulham and Chelsea were losing at Spurs, he checked all three tellies.
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TWO GOOD: Goal heroes Samir Nasri and Nicklas Bendtner celebrate

You didn't have to offer him a penny for his thoughts - his slightly smug expression spared such extravagance.

'The other results provided us with a good opportunity - even if it is only a chance in a billion,' he said later. 'We are an improving side full of spirit and great quality. People don't realise how young we are - we had six players in the team between 20 and 22.'

If the news that Michael Owen had inexplicably been left on the Newcastle bench by Chris Hughton did not cause Wenger's grin to spread even further, it should have. His team's performance, full of free expression and style, certainly did.
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Wenger admitted he was surprised by Owen's omission. 'I don't know why. Maybe it was his physical ability,' he said. Whether it was bravery or foolhardiness, Newcastle's caretaker boss was taught a lesson in the folly of gambling when a situation cried out for the fourth highest scorer in Premier League history.

Referee Mark Halsey handed the home side an unexpected lifeline in the 23rd minute when he harshly awarded a penalty for Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia's challenge on Ryan Taylor. You could sense Owen twitch in the dug-out. But Obafemi Martins strode up to become Newcastle's fifth penalty-taker of the season - and Almunia would have more problems picking daffodils than he did saving what was little more than a pass back.

The former Liverpool, Real Madrid and England striker hardly looked amused. Speculation is rife he took the news of his demotion badly, although Hughton insisted his decision had been received 'in a professional manner'. Owen's body language told a different story. Newcastle fans should make the most of him - he will not be around much longer.
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The hosts still gave as good as they got in a pulsating first half. Arsenal's defence resorted to panic measures and Kevin Nolan, returning for Newcastle after a three-match ban to make his 300th league appearance, went close to setting up Owen's stand-in, Peter Lovenkrands, in the 37th minute. But the ball hit the Dane on the backside bang in front of goal.

Newcastle needed superb blocks from Steven Taylor on Andrey Arshavin and Robin Van Persie to prevent certain goals, although he was lucky to be on the field for the second after a forearm smash on Arshavin in the 31st minute escaped the referee's attention. The second period was even better than the first.

Two goals in the space of 13 seconds set up the drama to follow. Nicklas Bendtner's header from a swirling Arshavin free-kick gave Arsenal a 57th-minute lead, but Martins cashed in on a William Gallas clanger to equalise.

Then two Arsenal goals in three minutes condemned Newcastle to at least a fortnight in the relegation zone, with Van Persie's slick passing providing both.

The Dutchman worked a superb one-two with Abou Diaby in the 64th minute before the French midfielder fired home. Then Samir Nasri benefited from Van Persie's spoon-feeding to squeeze the ball between Newcastle keeper Steve Harper and his near post.

If Harper was to blame for that, he redeemed himself with a series of point-blank saves as Arsenal, by now on a gluttonous rampage, could have doubled their tally. In between those Arsenal goals, Owen came off the bench as a 65th-minute replacement for the injured Taylor, but the damage had already been done.

Fulham 2 - 0 Manchaster United

Great Victory for Fulham, Bad for MANU

YOU!!.. Out..

Sir Alex Ferguson shuffled from the crime scene, looking like an elderly man bemused by the sudden disappearance of all he holds dear. In just eight days, the heart of his team of multi-million-pound footballers has been stolen from in front of his disbelieving eyes.

On a second successive afternoon of abject misery for the Scot, Manchester United finished with nine players on the pitch and a crisis on their hands. If Sir Alex had been enraged when Liverpool sacked their Old Trafford citadel last weekend, his mood on the return north last night can be only imagined.

Just a fortnight ago, United had embarrassed Fulham in a 4-0 FA Cup victory. Yesterday, they played like drowning men, and Ferguson must take his share of the blame.

He gambled with a team selection that demoted Wayne Rooney to a seat on the bench in the sunshine that bathed this fashionably elegant quarter of south west London with a warmth that never permeated the demeanour of United's manager yesterday.

Ferguson could feel only the cold breath of Liverpool on his neck. According to well-informed sources, Ferguson has vented much of his fury in recent days in the direction of Rooney at United's training ground at Carrington.

But if the striker was not deemed necessary to stop the rot set in by that defeat against Liverpool, he must truly have offended his manager.

Ferguson, summoning all his years of experience, opted to drop England's premier forward along with Carlos Tevez, Michael Carrick and Anderson. Before the interval, he had realised the folly of his plan.

Dimitar Berbatov was a listless, ineffectual lone target man, and at half-time, when no one in a United shirt escaped Ferguson's wrath, Rooney was instructed to replace the Bulgarian.

Perhaps in the days ahead, Ferguson will reflect that this had been no occasion to put the family silver at risk on such a reckless call.

Who would you want in a backs-to-the- wall battle? Rooney's belligerence, and renowned allegiance to United? Or Berbatov, a dilettante of a striker whose neat touches complement a team in the ascendancy?

Sadly for Ferguson, by the time Rooney's call came, the red mist was only a short time away. He was summoned only after United were already one goal, and one man down.

Paul Scholes was correctly shown a red card by referee Phil Dowd after he used two hands to prevent a close-range header from Bobby Zamora finding the net in the 17th minute. As soon as he had flapped the ball to safety, Scholes dropped on to his haunches.

His faraway look told its own story. He knew a red card was inevitable and, when it came, he walked disconsolately to the dressing room.

Fulham captain Danny Murphy, cool-as-you-like, sent United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, in the wrong direction from the penalty spot with his fourth Premier League goal against the champions.

Van der Sar, who played for Fulham until Ferguson paid £2million to solve an ongoing problem with filling his goalkeeper's jersey, had to be at his best to prevent United from falling deeper in arrears.

Only after the arrival of Rooney did United at last look capable of mounting a threat. But then Fulham's previously unemployed goalkeeper, Mark Schwarzer, showed his full repertoire.

He made a stunning double-save, from Ji-Sung Park, and Rooney, who pounced on the rebound, and for an encore made an accomplished save from a flashing header by Cristiano Ronaldo.

In truth, Ronaldo spent too much of the afternoon in his mode of pantomime clown, falling to the ground seeking sympathy for perceived aggrievances only to be mocked by Fulham's fans sensing what they had feared to be a wake was becoming a party down by the riverside.

Rooney - obviously frustrated at being left out - showed us both sides of his mercurial temperament. On the ball, he was hard to contain; but as the clock ran down, so did his patience.

He was booked in the 81st minute for a foul on substitute Olivier Dacourt - and six minutes later Rooney over-reacted to Dowd's whistle by hurling the ball, with child-like petulance, down the field.

Dowd raised a yellow card, then instantly turned it to red. As Rooney left the field, eyes blazing wild, he smashed a corner flag that duly bounced around like a speed ball in gymnasium. He vanished to a cacophony of boos and laughter.

One minute earlier, Zoltan Gera, who had been on the field barely five minutes, scored Fulham's second with a delightful volley after an exquisite first touch.

At the final whistle, Fulham's players revelled in victory, a reward for a performance that had been bright and busy in the first half, and stoic after the interval.

It will be little consolation to Ferguson to hear that his Fulham counterpart Roy Hodgson believes his side had beaten this year's champions.

'United are such a good team with so many good players, I still think they are favourites for the championship this year,' said Hodgson. 'But the last two defeats have given the teams chasing them that little bit more hope.'

And down on the field, Ferguson, in eight short days, had aged with worry as his football team could not respond to a crisis for the second time of asking.

FULHAM (4-4-2): Schwarzer; Pantsil, Hangeland, Hughes, Konchesky; Davies, Murphy (Dacourt 67min), Etuhu, Dempsey (Gera 81); Johnson, Zamora (Kamara 77). Subs (not used): Zuberbuhler, Nevland, Stoor, Kallio. Booked: Pantsil, Dempsey.

MAN UTD(4-4-2): Van der Sar; O'Shea (Tevez 70), Ferdinand, Evans, Evra; Fletcher, Scholes, Giggs, Park; Ronaldo, Berbatov (Rooney 46). Subs (not used): Foster, Neville, Anderson, Carrick, F Da Silva. Booked: Evans, Evra, Ronaldo, Rooney. Sent off: Scholes (18min), Rooney (89). Referee: P Dowd (Staffordshire).

Portsmouth 2 - 1 Everton

Leighton Baines fires Everton's opener at Pompey

Double joy for Crouch as Fratton goes frantic over relegation relief

Staying in the Premier League clearly matters more than dreams of the Champions League.

There is no other way to explain the limp Everton performance in the second half of this game which allowed Portsmouth to take charge and come from behind to earn a vital victory when Peter Crouch headed his second goal with 15 minutes remaining.

The visitors, beaten only by Manchester United in their previous 18 games, had seemed set fair for a win and a tilt at the top four when Leighton Baines scored a fourth-minute free-kick.

But a poor decision by referee Peter Walton to award Portsmouth a corner, almost the only favour he did the home team all afternoon, led to Crouch's equaliser midway through the first half and Paul Hart's team never looked back.

For all Everton's failings, this was a very impressive display by the home side, who would have slipped into the bottom three if they had lost.

Hart said: 'The players have proved how much desire they have to stay in this league. We were all over the place in the first five minutes, but credit to the lads, they got it together, steadied themselves and started to play.

'Everton's recent record shows the magnitude of our performance. I thought we were excellent.'

That was pushing it a bit, as was Hart's assertion that centre halves Sylvain Distin and Sol Campbell were 'magnificent'.

In truth, both looked a shadow of the players who anchored last season's FA Cup win and after a nervy first half were let off the hook by Jo and Louis Saha, whose performance must have had the visiting fans yearning for the weeks when they did not have any fit strikers.

Everton manager David Moyes rightly felt that his team failed to capitalise on the early lead given to them by Baines.

Distin was harshly judged to have fouled Saha on the edge of the area and Baines curled the free-kick not so much over the wall as past it, sending the ball in off David James's left-hand post.

Rise and shine: Peter Crouch (centre) rises highest to score the winning goal

The Portsmouth crowd, who had questioned Walton's ability to referee, had cause to soften their stance in the 22nd minute. He decided right back Glen Johnson's shot with his swinger of a left foot could only have gone so far wide with the aid of a deflection.

The initial corner was cleared but Niko Kranjcar clipped the ball back into the area, Johnson nodded it across goal and Crouch headed firmly into the corner of the net from close range.

'It wasn't a corner,' said Moyes. When it was suggested that you still have to defend set-pieces better, however they come about, the Everton boss agreed, but added: 'You don't have to if they are not given.'

It was an uncharacteristically meek response from the usually spiky Scot and his team's second-half display was just as insipid.

Moyes said: 'I always felt we were lacking that little bit of spirit and punch throughout the game.'

He was at a loss to explain why, but you suspect he had a little bit more to say to his players afterwards.

Portsmouth 2 Everton 1

Doing it for kicks: Hermann Hreidarsson and Joleon Lescott battle for the ball

Portsmouth, driven on by man-of-the-match Sean Davis, threatened to score only once, when Tim Howard saved from David Nugent, until Younes Kaboul forced a corner. Davis swung the ball to the back post and Crouch was there again to head home.

Davis later hit the post with a superb drive, but victory was never in doubt once Crouch claimed his third goal in two games and his 50th in the Premier League, a competition in which Portsmouth can now be much more confident of featuring next season.

PORTSMOUTH (4-4-1-1): James; Kaboul, Campbell, Distin, Hreidarsson; Johnson, Mullins, Davis, Nugent (Kanu 74min); Kranjcar; Crouch.
Subs (not used): Begovic, Pamarot, Utaka, Hughes, Basinas, Belhadj.
Booked: Hreidarsson, Kaboul.

EVERTON (4-1-3-2): Howard; Jacobsen (Gosling 86), Jagielka, Lescott, Baines; P Neville; Osman, Fellani, Pienaar; Saha, Jo (Rodwell 90).
Subs (not used): Nash, Castillo, Agard, Baxter, Wallace.
Booked: Osman.
Referee: P Walton (Northamptonshire).

Blackburn 1 - 0 West Ham

Neill puts his body on the line to leave Rovers frustrated

Predictably, Sam Allardyce left Ewood Park snarling about referee Chris Foy after Blackburn failed to lift themselves away from relegation trouble.

Big Sam and his pal at Hull City, Phil Brown, seem to take it in turn to berate match officials and yesterday Allardyce was fuming at West Ham's 35th-minute opener through Mark Noble.

Never mind that the goal was created with a classic series of one-touch passes, completed when Noble tucked away Diego Tristan's pass with the outside of his boot, the Rovers boss was angry that nobody had spotted Luis Boa Morte marginally offside earlier in the move.

ONE FOR ME: Keith Andrews (right) hails his leveller for Blackburn

He fumed: 'I have been angry at losing early goals this season but not today. It wasn't the fault of my players - it was the fault of the referee's assistant. With so much at stake, the officials' decisions have to be spot-on. There was no excuse for the assistant not to see the offside.'

Fortunately for the more sophisticated supporter, West Ham manager Gianfranco Zola is as charming as Allardyce is confrontational, even though his side conceded a 51st-minute equaliser to sub Keith Andrews.

'I didn't see the offside, but we also might have had a penalty when Christopher Samba pushed Kieron Dyer. It was very, very close,' twinkled the Italian.

Zola inherited a club in crisis owing to the Icelandic banking crash and an anticipated £20million pay-out to Sheffield United over Carlos Tevez, leading to a January fire sale of top players, including Craig Bellamy. But somehow they are in seventh place and looking good for the final European spot.

LAUGHING BOYS: West Ham celebrate Mark Noble's goal at Blackburn

'I hope we can have the problem of being in too many competitions next season,' he said. 'It will be a nice problem. Playing in Europe is always a fantastic experience and we will do everything we can to get there.'

West Ham's escape from Ewood Park owed more to heroic defending than the beautiful game Zola is known for. Ex-Rovers defender Lucas Neill, booed throughout by home fans on his return, will be battered and bruised this morning having got so many blocks in.

COLLECTOR'S ITEM: Kieron Dyer in action at Ewood Park

West Ham scored with a Zola-style goal when Noble started a glorious move in his own half. Boa Morte may have been offside in the build-up, but what followed after was exquisite, with the Portuguese winger and Tristan exchanging passes before Noble finished with aplomb.

Allardyce's decision to introduce Andrews at half-time paid quick dividends when Morten Gamst Pedersen's long throw was headed by Herita Ilunga straight to the Rovers sub, who scored his first Ewood Park goal from eight yards.

Rovers might have gone on to win it but James Tomkins, Scott Parker and Neill got their bodies in the way of everything fired at them.

BLACKBURN (4-4-2): Robinson; Ooijer (Andrews 46min), Samba, Nelsen, Givet; Diouf, Mokoena, Warnock, Pedersen; McCarthy, Roberts. Subs (not used): Brown, Tugay, Dunn, Khizanishvili, Villanueva, Treacy. Booked: Nelsen, Mokoena.

WEST HAM(4-4-2): Green; Spector, Tomkins, Neill, Ilunga; Noble, Parker, Kovac, Boa Morte (Lopez 79); Tristan (Payne 90), Di Michele (Dyer 82). Subs (not used): Lastuvka, Sears, N'Gala, Stanislas. Booked: Parker.

Referee: C Foy (Merseyside).

West Brom 1 - 1 Bolton

Koren late show denies Megson the perfect return.

Heads up: Bolton's Gary Cahill, center, and Jussi Jaaskelainen, center left, battle for the ball with West Bromwich Albion's Jonas Olsson

Gary Megson was more upset by Bolton's failure to complete the victory he insists they deserved than the sending-off which marred his emotional return to The Hawthorns.

The former Albion manager was given a standing ovation at the start by supporters who remembered how he led them to two promotions in three seasons before being given the sack five years ago.

While the Albion fans spent much of the following 90 minutes yelling complimentary chants in his direction, Megson's team set about trying to secure a victory and they were only denied by Robert Koren's deflected shot eight minutes from time.

But Megson's frustration grew over his inability to make a late substitution and he vented his anger at a linesman and was sent to the stands by referee Howard Webb, to sour an afternoon which had begun so promisingly.

Good fortune: Robert Koren (right) celebrates after Bolton Wanderers' Dan Shittu deflected his cross into his own net

'The reception I got from the West Bromwich fans was humbling because I wasn't expecting it,' said Megson.

'But I've no complaints about being sent off. I got the hump with the referee. I told the linesman I want to get Ebi Smolarek on at the next break in play. But when the ball went out they just carried on.'

Megson was far less sanguine about the result that keeps Bolton too close to the relegation battle for comfort.

'I'm not happy with a point,' he said. 'I thought we were well on top and I can't remember them having a shot apart from the goal - even that wasn't on target until it hit Danny Shittu on the thigh and was deflected in.'

The feature of the match was an individual contest between hardshooting Matt Taylor of Bolton and Albion's former England keeper Scott Carson.

Eventually, Taylor volleyed in from 20 yards in the 67th minute. Then an injury to Sebastien Puygrenier caused disruption in Bolton's defence and that led to the equaliser when Koren's cross-shot was deflected in.

The draw leaves Albion firmly rooted to the foot of the table and their boss Tony Mowbray said: 'Those are the sort of games we hope to win.'

Tottenham 1 - 0 Chelsea

Guus Hiddink knows the score but can't close the gap

The strains of Glory, Glory Tottenham Hotspur broke out as the final whistle sounded at White Hart Lane, but down in the King's Road last night the old Ian Dury classic What a Waste might have been more appropriate.

With kick-off delayed for 30 minutes by a security scare outside the ground, Chelsea began the game knowing that Manchester United were losing at Fulham, a defeat confirmed midway through the second half here. The carrot could hardly have been bigger.

Instead, there is merely stick for a lame and limp Chelsea who blew their big opportunity.

Only belatedly did they stir themselves, with Spurs goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes proving himself a hero as the home side clung on to the outstanding Luka Modric's goal from early in the second half.

Chelsea remain four points behind United when the gap could have been just one. 'If it is steamy in the kitchen, you have got to put out the fire,' lamented the Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink.

'We talked at half-time about them coming at us in the first 10 minutes and after that we could control the game. But it was sloppy defence to let them score their goal. Then the team woke up.'

But the wake-up call was from a recurring bad dream. It was this very week last year when they were held 4-4 by Spurs, after being 3-1 up, and their title challenge began its list towards the rocks.

Their stumble this time around was all the more baffling, given their dominance over their north London rivals. They went into the game having lost only once against them in 17 Premier League seasons. In addition, they had won all four league games since Hiddink replaced Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Chelsea met Spurs, though, at a bad time, with Harry Redknapp's managerial manoeuvres now beginning to pay off. They have lost only once at home in 17 games under him, and have taken 14 points from their last six unbeaten games.

'Well-deserved,' was his verdict. 'They only got at us in the last 15 minutes when they started launching it. We are playing as good as anybody in the country. We worked them hard and everybody stuck to their job.'

The UEFA Cup - the Europa League next season - could even be a target. 'You've got to fancy it,' said Redknapp. 'We've got to start looking upwards now.'

Chelsea have not beaten a London club in the league this season and it was easy to see why in the first half.

They were slow to start and although Michael Essien, whose return has galvanised Chelsea, got in a low shot that Gomes saved well, it took almost another half hour for the Tottenham goalkeeper to be troubled again, saving from Nicolas Anelka.

In between, a bubbly Tottenham created the better openings, with Robbie Keane looking especially bouncy.

After Jermaine Jenas had sent a fierce shot just over the angle of Petr Cech's post and crossbar, Keane forced a good save from the goalkeeper with a powerful drive. The Irish striker should have done better, though, when set up by Vedran Corluka for a shot from the edge of penalty area but hit it at Cech.

Surely Hiddink would instil more urgency into his side for the second half? Instead, it was Tottenham who showed greater eagerness and claimed the lead. Aaron Lennon teased Ashley Cole out on the right before sending in a low cross, which was met sweetly by Modric, sweeping the ball in from 12 yards past an uncharacteristically languid Cech.

'Modric is a special footballer,' said Redknapp. 'And he's definitely not a lightweight. He's much stronger than that.'

Chelsea did improve with the arrival of Ricardo Quaresma. First he supplied Frank Lampard for a header that Corluka blocked then, after Drogba had seen a shot saved by Gomes, the Portuguese curled in another that the goalkeeper clutched. The Brazilian did even better with a late save from John Terry's pointblank header.

'I brought him from Brazil to PSV Eindhoven,' said Hiddink of Gomes. 'It was the same there. In the first weeks he had a difficult time but I know that he is a great athlete and will save Tottenham points.'

Now Chelsea can only hope that theirs was an aberration, while Manchester United's almost unheardof consecutive defeats constitute a proper blip.

TOTTENHAM (4-4-2): Gomes; Corluka, Woodgate, King, Assou-Ekotto; Lennon (Zokora 90min), Palacios, Jenas, Modric (O'Hara 87); Bent, Keane.
Subs (not used): Cudicini, Bentley, Huddlestone, Pavlyuchenko, Dawson.
Booked: Palacios, Modric.

CHELSEA (4-4-2): Cech; Bosingwa, Alex, Terry, A Cole; Belletti (Quaresma 61), Essien (Malouda 76), Lampard, Ballack; Drogba, Anelka.

Subs (not used): Hilario, Ivanovic, Di Santo, Kalou, Mancienne.
Booked: Belletti, Ballack.
Referee: M Dean (Wirral).

Stoke 1 - 0 Middlesbrough

Late Shawcross strike boosts survival hopes

Ryan's express: Shawcross delivers the knockout blow to Boro

With a predictability bordering on the inevitable, Rory Delap's long throw proved too much for troubled Middlesbrough, and Ryan Shawcross brought the house down with a glancing header.

Skirmishes outside the ground, police arriving late at the various flashpoints and busy ambulances attending the scene provided a worrying aftermath to an enthralling afternoon.

Stoke's eighth victory at home was achieved with their trademark set-piece, though triumphant manager Tony Pulis admitted that it had not worked for a while.

'We scored eight of our first 13 or 14 goals through the long throw,' he said. 'But after that they dried up and this is the first time since that run at the start of the season that we've scored from it. It's a great weapon, though, and we've been oiling Rory up to get that quality on the throw again.'

Seven minutes from time Delap found that quality, and Stoke glimpsed Premier League survival. In that same moment, Boro manager Gareth Southgate found himself on the edge of the precipice and facing abuse from his club's own fans.

It did not matter that he had trained all week to prevent that long throw from beating his defenders.

'It would have been negligent not to, and we dealt with it for most of the game,' he pointed out with a certain amount of futility. Neither was it any longer significant that Boro had outfought Stoke for most of the match with a bruising display that provided a platform for some fine passing from the away team.

Eight successive away defeats, with no goals in seven of them, was too much for some of the hardcore Teesside supporters.

Boro chairman Steve Gibson is not the kind of man to panic and sack his manager just when togetherness is needed, though regular followers of the club say they would not bet against Southgate walking in the summer if Boro are relegated.

He takes such difficult days to heart, even though he shrugged his shoulders last night and insisted: 'It's part and parcel of the job, it is irrelevant how I am. My job is to keep the club in this division.'

That would have looked more likely last night if Tony McMahon had been able to end a sparkling move with a scoring header, if Gary O'Neil's shot had not been turned round the post, if Tuncay's skills had come with an end product. Boro's season has been full of if-onlys.

Clashes between rival fans left a steward in a stable condition in hospital after suffering a head wound. One female fan was also reported to have been injured. Three supporters were arrested.

Tottenham 2 - 1 Aston Villa

Harry Redknapp described Sunday's fine win at high-flying Villa as a 'fantastic result'. In what must be our best win in the Premier League this season, goals early in each half from Jermaine Jenas and Darren Bent secured a 2-1 success at Villa Park.

Brad Friedel was the busier of the two keepers, denying Luka Modric in the first half before flying stops kept out Robbie Keane and Modric again after the break. Aaron Lennon also fizzed a shot inches over.

Villa, who came closest when Emile Heskey hit the crossbar in the first half, replied via John Carew's late header but there were no more scares.

"To go to Villa, one of the best sides around at the moment and take three points is superb for us," said Harry.

"Overall I was delighted because they are a difficult side to play against. They've lots of ability and the crowd get right behind them. It was a great performance.

"The players have been terrific and we're on a good run. We're working hard and getting the rewards.

"We were fantastic against United for two hours at Wembley, came back and beat Middlesbrough 4-0 four days later and that showed real character. We then controlled it at Sunderland and scored a late goal for another good point.

"So we're in good form - we've taken 33 points in 21 games since I've been here and you'd take that average, that's top seven form over the whole season.

"I'm delighted with the players, their attitude has been first class."

Harry made a key decision in the first half to withdraw Didier Zokora and introduce Vedran Corluka to counter the attacking threat of Ashley Young on Villa's left flank.

He explained: "I played Didier against Ronaldo when we played United earlier in the season at White Hart Lane and he was fantastic, I played him right-back against Stewart Downing as well, so we're talking about two of the best left wingers around and he's been brilliant.

"I thought he could do that job again but he found it hard going. He over-covered, got too close to the centre-halves and there was always space.

"Villa got the ball out to Ashley Young, he kept running and when he does that you've no chance.

"Charlie (Vedran) came on, got close to him, stopped him getting the ball and did a superb job. We pushed on from there."

Benitez issues a quick guide on....

Manchester Utd 1 Liverpool 4:
Benitez issues a quick guide on the way to defeat United

After watching his fast Spanish striker expose the weaknesses he had identified in Manchester United's defence, the 'fat Spanish waiter' was understandably satisfied.

It was Rafa Benitez, after all, who dismissed Arsene Wenger's declaration that United had become 'untouchable'. Benitez who insisted four weeks ago that the champions of England, Europe and the world were not the invincibles Arsenal's manager would have us think.

Kop that: Rafa Benitez masterminds a stunning victory over Manchester United.

United's heaviest defeat at Old Trafford in 17 years was quite a way for Benitez to prove his point and now he only hopes that others, Wenger included, will copy the blueprint of his tactical masterplan.

If Liverpool are to have any hope of catching United, they need the teams still due at Old Trafford to follow the example of Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard and use a deadly combination of pace, power and skill to unlock Sir Alex Ferguson's record-breaking back line. As well, that is, as unsettle United's midfield with someone as destructive as Javier Mascherano.

Until Saturday, United were unbeaten at home in the Barclays Premier League this season, having conceded just five goals. Teams were turning up convinced they had no hope of securing even a point. But United are not impenetrable, no team is, and Benitez is now urging others to take note.

In Liverpool's favour is the fact that there is pace in abundance in the teams that United still have to host between now and the end of the season. Aston Villa are at their best when they get the ball out to their wingers and so are Tottenham, while Manchester City and Arsenal also have quick players capable of terrorising Nemanja Vidic and Co.

Man of The Match: Fernando Torres celebrates after hitting the first of Liverpool's four goals.

'I think United have weaknesses,' said Benitez. 'They have quality, a lot of quality in attack, that is the main thing that they have. They are strong in defence because they have plenty of possession. But when they don't have the ball and you move the ball quickly and play behind the defenders, you know you can beat them. We knew that they are really good at playing between the lines with penetrating passes.

'So we needed to stop these passes and put the midfielders under pressure every time they were going to receive the ball; and after that try to play simple and go forward quickly, because it's an offensive team and they are always high.'

Before this encounter, Vidic was a contender for Footballer of the Year. But the manner in which he was terrorised by Torres before receiving a straight red card for his professional foul on Gerrard has probably ruined any chance of that.

Benitez saw something in Vidic that he knew Torres could exploit. 'That was one of the ideas,' he said. 'We knew that maybe with Fernando's movement we could create problems for the defenders.'

Holding court in an Old Trafford press auditorium Ferguson has long refused to appear in after Premier League matches, Benitez was in his element. He had endured the Spanish waiter taunts from United fans and soaked up insults from Ferguson. 'Disturbed' and 'ridiculous' was how Ferguson described him after that outburst in January, adding last Friday that he will need to read 'Freud' to understand his rival.

Smacker: Steven Gerrard¿s TV kiss after his strike from the penalty spot.

Reminded of all that, and the idea he was 'cracking up' in January, Benitez did something on Saturday he so rarely does. He smiled. 'I can guarantee you that I was calm and I am calm,' he said. 'But I had to defend my club and that is what I did.

Seeing red: Nemanja Vidic is given his marching orders.

'I read Freud in school and university but now I try to improve my English. Maybe he will understand me if I say something again but I have a lot of respect for him. We shook hands after the game because he was not talking bad blood. He is a fantastic manager at a big, big club. But I was not worried about myself. I was thinking only about my club. I think Liverpool has been the best team in Europe in the last five years. It is a fact.'

The fact is, though, Liverpool have lacked the consistency of United in the title race. Against their main rivals they have been terrific. Home and away wins against United and Chelsea as well as a draw at Arsenal. The kind of form that usually secures the championship. But precious points have too often been dropped at Anfield.

'It's football and it's difficult to explain why we have dropped points when we have,' said Benitez. 'Still we need to be more consistent against the other teams.'

This performance will give them the confidence to achieve that consistency. Not least the fashion in which they fought back after Pepe Reina's reckless foul on Ji-sung Park invited Cristiano Ronaldo to score from the penalty spot.

Four-midable: Andrea Dossena (left) is congratulated by his team-mates after rounding off Liverpool's magnificent victory.

First came that wonderful equaliser from Torres, then Gerrard's penalty for Patrice Evra's foul on the Liverpool captain, before Fabio Aurelio punished Vidic for his red-card challenge with a fine free-kick and Andrea Dossena outsprinted John O'Shea in pursuit of a Reina kick and sent an audacious lob over Edwin van der Sar.

Contrary to Rio Ferdinand's opinion, the red card was not 'debatable' and contrary to a view expressed by Ferguson, United were not the better team. Not on Saturday anyway.

West Ham 0 - 0 West Brom

Marc-Antoine Fortune is challenged by West Ham United's Matthew Upson

Basement club West Brom failed to take advantage of an injury-hit West Ham side in a mediocre draw at Upton Park.

The Baggies had the best chances, with Jonathan Greening firing over, James Morrison seeing his shot saved and Shelton Martis hitting the bar.

West Ham rarely threatened, although both David di Michele and Savio should have hit the target with their efforts.

The home side also had centre-back Matthew Upson carried off in the first half with a leg injury.

However, it was later revealed that Upson was walking freely after being taken into the tunnel on a stretcher.

That was the only bit of good news for Hammers manager Gianfranco Zola, who watched his side produce a below-par performance.

The Baggies conjured up the best and only clear chance of the first half when Morrison was inexplicably allowed to weave into the penalty area before firing in a low shot that was saved by the feet of Robert Green.

West Ham failed to come up with anything as exciting in the West Brom box during that period, although the spritely Freddie Sears had an effort on goal blocked, while his other shot was deflected on to the roof of the net.

The Hammers cause was certainly not helped by the injury to centre-back Upson, who was replaced by Jonathan Spector.

West Ham improved slightly after the break but again failed to give Scott Carson much of a workout in the West Brom goal.

Both Di Michele and Savio, making his first start, should have tested the keeper but both fired wildly over.

West Brom wasted two good chances to punish the London side but first Greening dinked his shot over the bar from six yards and then Martis powered his header on to the bar from closer in.

Three points would have given the basement side a glimmer of hope of survival but at the end of the 90 minutes it seems Tony Mowbray's team will now need a miracle.

Two games banned for Vidic

....receiving his marching orders for the foul....

From bad to worse! Vidic nightmare not over as two-game ban rocks Manchester United's title hopes. Nemanja Vidic was yesterday banned for two games as the fallout from a humiliating defeat by Liverpool began to take its toll on Manchester United.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s rivals are waiting to see just how damaging Saturday’s setback will be to United’s hopes of a hat-trick of Barclays Premier League titles and their pursuit of a clean sweep of trophies.

Nightmare: Vidic blundered to let Fernando Torres in to score Liverpool's first......

Now the sending-off has ruled Vidic out of next weekend’s trip to Fulham and the following league game at home to Aston Villa.

...before flattening Steven Gerrard....

The FA confirmed that the straight red card shown to Vidic for hauling down Steven Gerrard at Old Trafford will mean a two-game suspension because it comes on the back of his dismissal for two bookings in the 2-1 defeat at Anfield last September.

At least Ferguson has an accomplished replacement in Jonny Evans to partner Rio Ferdinand at the heart of his defence and Ji-sung Park is confident Saturday’s defeat will not stop United retaining the title.

...and watching Fabio Aurelio curl home the resulting free-kick

Park said: ‘If we produce good performances, like we have been doing, for the rest of our league games this defeat will not be a big problem.’

Meanwhile, Liverpool have been told by UEFA president Michel Platini that the ruling body will try to avoid forcing the club to play the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on April 15, the 20th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster.

Gameweek 29 Result

Wonderful goal by N'Zogbia

Charles N'Zogbia's fine individual goal was the deciding factor in Saturday's away game at Sunderland and the icing on the cake after a good all-round performance for the team.

Latics' record signing has a habit of scoring special goals against the Black Cats having scored a similar one for Newcastle back in 2006, and speaking after the game he talked us through what was going through his mind when he picked up the ball deep in his own half:

"I wasn't really thinking I would go all the way and score when I got the ball, but all of a sudden we were two onto one, and at that point I just thought 'lets make them really work here'.

"I felt a push at one point but I stayed on my feet and when I got into the box I tried to take my chance and got my goal.

"It was a great time to score not too long after they got their equaliser.

"I think we were getting a bit frustrated and it was important to get back in front as quickly as possible, and to finish the first half in the lead was really good.

N'Zogbia slots the winner past Fulop

The goal meant that Wigan now move onto 38 points for this season, taking a huge step towards guaranteeing survival for next season and N'Zogbia explained what it meant to himself and the team to get such a good result:

"We're all happy today to have won the game, and for me personally it was great to score my first goal for Wigan.

"I was really happy for Ben Watson who got his first goal for the club as well, because he's a really nice guy and a very good footballer too. We all worked hard to get something from the game and that's exactly what happened.

"It's a good position to be in for us and after today's win we want to carry on winning and see what happens come the end of the season.

"Everyone's been really friendly since my arrival here and that's why we've got such a good team and obviously that's helped me in settling in."

Middlesbrough 1 - 1 Portsmouth

As the old saying goes, it was a six-pointer at the Riverside this afternoon and unfortunately for both sides, the game ended in a draw.

Yes, both Middlesbrough and Portsmouth remain right, slap bang in the middle of a relegation dog fight after they drew 1-1 this afternoon. It's a three points which Gareth Southgate or Paul Hart could have really used right now, however both will have to be satisfied with a single point after the hosts came from a goal down to leave the visitors to contemplate what might have been.

Boro now face an uphill task to maintain their Premier League status with just nine games to go. They currently sit 19th in the league, two points behind Pompey in 17th and with difficult trips to Stoke City and Bolton coming up next, it would take a brave man to predict Boro will survive.

Meanwhile, Pompey also have a massive fight on their hands to stay up this season, with the south coast club only evading the relegation zone on goal difference. They, too have a difficult fixtures coming up with the likes of Everton and Arsenal still to visit Fratton Park in the run-in.

Liverpool 4 - 1 Manchester United

It had looked rosy when Cristiano Ronaldo converted a first-half penalty, but an uncharacteristically nervy display at the back allowed Liverpool back into this match; and the subsequent 4-1 defeat means the Reds’ lead at the top is chopped to four points, albeit with a game in hand.

Ronaldo put United ahead but three defensive mistakes led to Liverpool goals, and Nemanja Vidic’s second-half sending-off, which preceded the visitors' third goal, put paid to taking any points. In truth, this wasn’t a great day at the office, it never quite clicked into place. But one thing is certain: this defeat must be used to propel the Reds forward in the title race. The team responds well to set-backs, and this is only a minor stumble.

United made three changes from the team that beat Internazionale in midweek. Whereas Sir Alex chose the experience of Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs against Jose Mourinho’s men, the Reds boss favoured the energy and youthful vigour of Anderson and Ji-sung Park, while Carlos Tevez partnered Wayne Rooney in place of Dimitar Berbatov.

It must have stuck in the throats of Liverpool’s players and fans when United were welcomed onto the field as “the Champions of England, the Champions of Europe, and the Champions of the World”. Such is United’s dominance these days that the roles are reversed from when Liverpool dominated at home and abroad years ago.

The shouts of “United, United” were deafening as the teams kicked off, and the sheer gravity of how potentially decisive this match could be added extra spice, though it was hardly needed. Liverpool, who knew that they had to win to keep alive their ailing title hopes, were forced into a change when Alvaro Arbeloa was injured during the warm-up and replaced by Sami Hyypia.

United made the early running, while Liverpool started with a game-plan of containment, a 4-5-1 formation aimed at constricting United’s free-flowing football, but the Reds were urged on by the fans, the coaching staff and Rooney screaming at his team-mates to press forward. The start typified both team’s styles; United brooding with attacking intent, Liverpool patient and poker-faced.

The visitors blinked first. Tevez slotted a pass through the channel to Park on 23 minutes, and the midfielder was wiped out by Pepe Reina – referee Alan Wiley had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Ronaldo stood poised ready to strike from twelve yards and his perfectly-placed kick was followed with a collective roar of approval and rousing “We shall not be moved” as Old Trafford bounced and rocked.

The lead lasted only five minutes, however, after a rare error from Vidic, who failed to deal with a high ball forward from Reina. Whether it was the intermittent spring sunshine or indecision, he let the ball bounce and Fernando Torres nipped the ball off his toes. The Serb stumbled and Torres was left to slip the ball past the onrushing Edwin van der Sar. It was a frustrating leveller, largely undeserved and just as the Reds had appeared to take control.

United immediately looked to make amends when Reina just held onto a deflected Ronaldo free-kick, and shortly before half time Michael Carrick sent a wicked shot just over the bar. But seconds later Liverpool took the lead. Gerrard latched onto Torres’ pass and Patrice Evra brought him down. The Liverpool skipper calmly despatched his spot-kick, though Edwin guessed the right way.

In the second half, no doubt with Sir Alex’s words still ringing in their ears, the United players pressed forward, roared on by the Old Trafford crowd. Reina was twice lucky to escape after spilling crosses, once allowing the ball to rebound off his post, another dropped on the goal line. But neither occasion gleaned an equaliser. Nor did Ronaldo’s flashed cross on 63 minutes, or the return ball from Rooney which Tevez couldn’t quite reach. But United were definitely in the ascendancy.

Tevez had an even better chance on 70 minutes when Carrick’s lofted pass found him free in the area. He chested the ball down but could apply the finish. Shortly afterwards, United made a triple substitution with Berbatov, Scholes and Giggs coming on for Carrick, Anderson and Park. But United’s hopes of turning this match around were all but curtailed when Vidic was given a straight red card for hauling down Gerrard who was through on goal, and to make matters worse Fabio Aurelio curled the resulting free-kick into the top corner of van der Sar’s goal.

It all but snuffed out even the slimmest hopes of a Reds recovery and Andrea Dossena's late lob compounded matters and made this a day to forget. Liverpool may claim the bragging rights and a double over United in the league this season, but Sir Alex and co's sights are set on bigger prizes.