Meanwhile, Chelsea's dream of winning a third Premier League crown were dented as a last-gasp Robbie Keane strike held them to a thrilling 4-4 draw at White Hart Lane. United now lead Arsenal by three points and the Blues by five as we enter the final eight matches of the campaign.

United made plenty of changes for the visit of Bolton. Kuszczak sat behind a back four which saw Owen Hargreaves playing at right-back, Gerard Pique partner Nemanja Vidic in the centre and John O'Shea play at left-back. The midfield was stronger - Ronaldo and Nani on the flanks with Darren Fletcher and Anderson in the middle. In attack, Wayne Rooney was rested as Louis Saha partnered Carlos Tevez.

This was far from a polished United performance. Bolton were gutsy and were not afraid to attack; but they were wasteful and were ultimately left to rue a handful of excellent stops from the impressive Kuszczak.

Ronaldo fired United into the lead on 24 minutes as he drilled a Nani corner into the roof of the net. The ball bobbled around the six yard box before the winger, given time and space by the Bolton backline, laced the loose ball home to break the deadlock.

Tottenham's draw with Chelsea - a 4-4 stunner at the Lane - was met with cheers of ecstasy from the Old Trafford faithful. We now have a clear advantage in the title race but now face a run of very difficult league matches. The Scousers are in town on Sunday, the unpredictable Aston Villa follow that and we've still got to go to Stamford Bridge. It could well go down to the wire.

Full Time - Manchester United 2-0 Bolton Wanderers

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