United had no reply to former England midfielder Steve Stone's 36th-minute strike which kept United in third place behind Chelsea, who failed to take advantage when they could only manage a scoreless draw at home to Everton.

"It's not very often you beat Manchester United so to beat them was great, especially in the circumstances," said Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp after the win which lifted them five points clear of the relegation zone.

"We need points and we have now taken 13 points out of the last 15, but we're not there till we're over the winning line," he added.

United boss Alex Ferguson admitted it had been a frustrating day.

"We worked our socks off. It was a frustrating day for us," said the Scot.

"Our players have worked really hard and tried their very best. We could have done with more composure in the second half but when you're 1-0 down you have to go for it."

Chelsea meanwhile had several chances against the Toffees and their latest league setback, following last weekend's 3-2 away defeat to Aston Villa, will provide further ammunition to Claudio Ranieiri's detractors.

Frank Lampard hit the Everton woodwork and marksman Adrian Mutu wasted another good chance.

Chelsea defender William Gallas strained his hamstring and is very doubtful for Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg in Monaco.

Southampton further underlined Manchester City's relegation woes with a 3-1 victory at the City of Manchester stadium.

City have only won three Premiership matches at their new ground this season and are now just two points above the relegation places.

"The crowd have been better than we have here," said Keegan on his first day back in charge after a recent back operation.

"The tension that the players feel under hasn't lifted all season and we've really struggled here. It happens in new stadiums but with the quality we've got we didn't expect to."

James Beattie headed his 13th Premiership goal of the season for Saints before Kevin Phillips made it 2-0. Nicolas Anelka gave City a glimmer of hope with 12 minutes remaining but Phillips scored his second three minutes later.

Blackburn Rovers eased their relegation fears with a second straight win, beating fellow strugglers Leicester 1-0 at Ewood Park.

Leicester are now six points from safety in the drop zone but Nikos Dabizas' own goal lifts Blackburn five points clear of the relegation places.

"It is a relief, we knew exactly what sort of game we were going to get. It was a nervy affair with two teams fighting for their lives, but we got the breakthrough," said Blackburn boss Graeme Souness.

Rovers hitman Andy Cole burst into the box and crossed for Jon Stead, but Leicester defender Dabizas turned the ball past keeper Ian Walker three minutes before the interval to dent the Foxes' Premiership survival chances.

Liverpool's scoreless home draw against Fulham has handed the advantage to Newcastle in the race for the fourth Champions League spot.

Reds skipper Steven Gerrard stepped up to take a controversial second-half penalty, instead of regular taker Michael Owen, and his miss served only to underline Liverpool's poor record from the spot.

Referee Steve Bennett's decision against Fulham defender Bobby Petta seemed harsh and keeper Edwin van der Sar was equal to Gerrard's shot.

"I felt a bit frustrated and disappointed for the players, they tried everything to score the vital goal," said Reds manager Gerard Houllier.

"We probably deserved to win this game. The penalty played a part but I'm not going to blame my player for missing a penalty," he added.

If Newcastle win at Aston Villa on Sunday, the UEFA Cup semi-finalists will leapfrog the Reds with a two-point advantage and a game in hand.

Matthew Holland rescued Charlton's Champions League ambitions with a header four minutes from time against Birmingham at the Valley.

The Republic of Ireland midfielder headed in Chris Powell's cross to cancel out countryman Clinton Morrison's header for Birmingham two minutes earlier.

Charlton remain three points off fourth place in the table with the Blues a point behind them.

Wolves kept their slim hopes of Premiership survival alive at Molineux against League Cup holders Middlesbrough thanks to Carl Cort's 28th-minute header and Henri Camara's second-half volley.

Bolton Wanderers eased past Tottenham with a 2-0 win at the Reebok stadium.

Former Real Madrid defender Ivan Campo scored seven minutes in and Henrik Pedersen doubled the advantage with 25 minutes left following a jinking run.