Portsmouth held on to beat Manchester United 2-1 on Saturday in the Premier League and help Chelsea move within three points of first place.
United defender John O’Shea scored in the 90th minute and teammate Alan Smith nearly added another in injury time, but Portsmouth goalkeeper David James made the tough save.
Matthew Taylor gave Portsmouth the lead in the 30th by knocking in a rebound, and United defender Rio Ferdinand made it 2-0 with an own goal in the 89th.
United, who had won seven straight games in the league, lead with 78 points, only three more than Chelsea, who beat Tottenham 1-0 on Ricardo Carvalho’s 52nd-minute goal.
Ferdinand scored after a mix-up with United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar. The England defender tapped the ball toward goal with Van der Sar off his line and it trickled into the net.
Both United and Chelsea have six games left and play each other in their penultimate Premier League match at Stamford Bridge on May 9. The two also play Champions League and FA Cup matches over the next week. Chelsea are seeking their third consecutive Premier League title, while United want to end a four-year drought.
Man United host AS Roma on Wednesday in the Champions League, trailing 2-1 from the first leg, and play Watford on Saturday in the FA Cup semifinals.
Liverpool beat Reading 2-1 to secure third place, and Arsenal lost their first league game at Emirates Stadium, falling 1-0 to relegation-threatened West Ham. Liverpool have 60 points, followed by Arsenal with 55, Bolton with 53 and Everton, which beat Fulham 4-1 on Friday, with 50.
Also on Saturday, it was: Blackburn 1, Aston Villa 2; Middlesbrough 4, Watford 1; Sheffield United 1, Newcastle 2; and Wigan 1, Bolton 3.
Frustrated
Chelsea had been frustrated by a stubborn Tottenham defence during the first half, but Carvalho scored from a 25m shot in the second half after a pass from John Obi Mikel.
Tottenham lost at Sevilla 2-1 in the first leg of the Uefa Cup quarterfinals on Thursday, and Chelsea drew 1-1 with Valencia in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Chelsea have the return leg at Valencia on Tuesday, then face Blackburn on Sunday in the FA Cup semifinals. Tottenham host Sevilla on Thursday. ”It is difficult to play in every competition at the same time,” Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said.
Liverpool are also playing in Champions League on Wednesday, but they have a 3-0 lead going into the second leg against PSV Eindhoven.
On Saturday, Dirk Kuyt headed in the winning goal in the 86th minute. Liverpool had taken the lead in the 15th when defender Alvaro Arbeloa exchanged passes with Peter Crouch before curling the ball inside the far post. Brynjar Gunnarsson scored with a low drive in the 47th to equalise for Reading.
”It was difficult after a Champions League game and with the players focusing on the Champions League,” Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez said. ”It was difficult to play against a physical team who were pressing and working hard to the end.”
Bobby Zamora scored with a long-range shot in the 45th at Arsenal.
In the second half, West Ham goalkeeper Robert Green saved a low shot from Gilberto and also pushed away a chance from Emmanuel Adebayor, while Cesc Fabregas had an attempt come back off the underside of the crossbar.
”We should have scored 10 and in the end we lost 1-0, so it is very difficult to understand how it happened,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said after his team’s third straight league defeat. ”I can never remember a game like that. It was one-way traffic from the first minute to the last.”
Ranked
After three straight league victories, West Ham are in 19th place with 29 points, flanked either side by Sheffield United (31) and Watford (20), who both lost on Saturday.
Sheffield United lost to an 80th-minute goal from Newcastle defender Steven Taylor. The Blades had levelled in the 74th with a goal from Christian Nade. Obafemi Martins scored Newcastle’s other goal.
Watford lost 4-1 to Middlesbrough in their 18th league defeat this season. Two goals from Mark Viduka and one each from George Boateng and Fabio Rochemback — combined with West Ham’s win — mean relegation is virtually sealed for Watford. Damien Francis scored for Watford.
”I am not going to put the white flag up,” said Watford manager Adrian Boothroyd.
Wigan and Charlton will also be worried. Charlton drew 0-0 with Manchester City on Friday and are 17th — one spot above the relegation zone — with 31 points. Wigan are 16th with 33 points.
Despite scoring first through Emile Heskey, Wigan lost to Bolton 3-1. Andranik Teymourian scored twice in five minutes in the second half, after Nicolas Anelka levelled in the 44th.
Aston Villa defeated Blackburn 2-1 with goals in each half from Patrik Berger and Gabriel Agbonlahor. — Sapa-AP