Soccer-Ronaldo penalty takes United to within whisker of title

Sat May 5, 2007 2:45PM BST

By Mike Collett

LONDON, May 5 (Reuters)

Manchester United took a giant step towards the Premier League title when they beat Manchester City 1-0 in a one-sided local derby on Saturday to open up an eight-point lead over defending champions Chelsea.
United have 88 points with two matches to play which means Chelsea, on 80 points with three matches to go, must win at Arsenal on Sunday to keep alive their now slim hopes of a third successive championship.
Although United dominated the match at the City of Manchester Stadium, the game came down to a tale of two penalties -- one scored by United and one missed by City.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored for United after 34 minutes while Darius Vassell saw Edwin van der Sar save his 81st minute penalty with his out-stretched legs.
It was the second successive home match in which City had missed a penalty. They ended their last home game of the season without a goal in eight successive home matches since New Year's Day.
Their Tally of 10 home league goals is the all-time worst record in the English top tier since league football began in 1888.