A 2-1 win over Bolton was enough to send United three points clear of Arsenal, who were held to a 1-1 draw at Everton.

Chelsea now trail Ferguson's men by seven points after slumping to a 1-0 home defeat by Liverpool, who eased the pressure on beleaguered manager Gerard Houllier by moving up to fifth place thanks to Bruno Cheyrou's 33rd minute winner.

Houllier, who came under fire from fans at the club's annual general meeting earlier this week, admitted it had been a desperately needed morale boost.

"This is a good omen for the future and it comes at a good time after a difficult week," the Frenchman admitted, refusing to apologise for his side's negative tactics.

"Today was an ugly win but a very good win nevertheless."

Sir Alex Ferguson paid Bolton the compliment of fielding a near full strength side and the Manchester United manager's policy paid dividends in the form of first half goals from Paul Scholes and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

But Bolton refused to lie down and their pressure ensured a tense finale after Youri Djorkaeff's header was deflected into the net by Gary Neville a minute from the end.

"It has been a good night for us but we have done our bit because we had to battle and show our quality," Ferguson said. "The other results were a bonus for us."

Liverpool suffered the second half loss of goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek to injury and El Hadji Diouf to a controversial red card but still held out for a victory that may have fatally compromised Chelsea's title ambitions.

Blues boss Claudio Ranieri spent an unusually long time talking to the club's Russian owner Roman Abramovich after the match but emerged to insist he had no fears for his future.

"Don't worry - you will still see me on Thursday and for a long time yet," the Italian joked.

Ranieri admitted Chelsea had hit their roughest patch since Abramovich began injecting his money into the

club in the summer, but insisted they could ride it out.

"There isn't any team that can stay at a high level for 11 months. When we were at the top of the table, I said it was not important, that we had to continue to build."

To make matters worse for Chelsea, they will now have to do without Hernan Crespo for at least a week after the Argentinian striker limped off with a calf strain in the 12th minute.

Arsenal looked to have weathered the worst of Everton's storm when Nigerian playmaker Nwankwo Kanu ran on to Thierry Henry's pass and skipped round Nigel Martyn to put them ahead, totally against the run of play, in the 29th minute.

But Everton's tenacity finally paid off with a quarter of an hour remaining when Canadian striker Thomasz Radzinski equalised.

Newcastle could have scored five or six in a first half onslaught against struggling Leeds.

But Sir Bobby Robson's side had to settle for a 1-0 win courtesy of Alan Shearer's 4th-minute strike and were very nearly made to pay for their profligacy as Leeds mounted a spirited second half fightback.

Paolo di Canio ensured Manchester City's winless run was extended to 13 matches with a late equaliser for Charlton.

To add to the agony for the City faithful, the Italian striker's goal came on the rebound after David Seaman had saved an 84th minute penalty awarded for what appeared to be an unintentional hand ball by defender Richard Dunne.

Up until then City had looked odds on to finally end their miserable streak thanks to Robbie Fowler's 39th minute opener.

Goals in either half from Joseph Desire Job and Szilard Nemeth earned Middlesbrough a 2-1 win over Fulham that pushes the Londoners down to seventh.

French winger Stephane Dalmat helped fire Tottenham out of the relegation zone with a first half double as the beleaguered north London club bounced back to form with a 4-1 win over Birmingham.

Welsh midfielder Simon Davies, in his comeback game after hip surgery, also got on the scoresheet as Spurs raced to a three-goal lead before the break.

Robbie Savage notched a consolation effort for Birmingham from the penalty spot mid-way through the second half but Robbie Keane's seventh goal of the season restored the home side's advantage in the 79th minute.

Leicester ensured they did not drop into the relegation place vacated by Spurs by holding out for a goalless draw at Southampton. The point was enough to lift the Foxes above fellow Premiership newcomers Portsmouth on goal difference.

Bottom side Wolves continued their fight for Premiership survival with a battling 2-2 draw at home to Blackburn.

A rare headed goal from skipper Paul Butler and Alex Rae's 8th of the season put Wolves ahead after Andy Cole's 14th minute opener but Dwight Yorke rescued a point for the visitors 11 minutes from time.