Manchester United are on the brink of winning the Premiership after extending their lead over Chelsea to five points following a dramatic match day. United came back from two goals down to beat Everton 4-2 at Goodison Park, while Chelsea failed to beat Bolton Wanderers at home, drawing 2-2. The Red Devils are in charge of the table with 85 points, Chelsea are second on 80, with 3 matches remaining including a clash between both teams. Sir Alex Ferguson opted to rest star man Cristiano Ronaldo who is tired up due to United's busy schedule, and the team dearly suffered from his absence. Everton defender Alan Stubbs stunned the Red Devils after just 12 minutes with a deflected free kick that went past Dutch keeper Edwin van der Sar. Five minutes into the second half, Manuel Fernandes doubled the lead for the Toffees with a fine shot from outside the box. United were frustrated as news from Stamford Bridge indicated Chelsea are leading 2-1 at that time. However, the game turned in favor of Ferguson's team who were fortunate to level the score following double errors from Everton's players.
Eagles scored United's fourth John O'Shea pulled one back in the 61st minute when he slotted in from close range capitalizing on a gaffe from Everton rookie goalkeeper Iain Turner who failed to handle Ryan Giggs' poor corner. Ferguson soon fielded Ronaldo to turn things around, and seven minutes later, former United defender Phil Neville fired into his own net after Ronaldo's initial header was blocked on the line by Turner, but Neville failed to clear. Irony hit for the second time when former Everton striker Wayne Rooney completed the comeback ten minutes later with a clever finish, and three minutes into stoppage time, fringe player Chris Eagles scored the fourth with a curling low shot from inside the area. At Stamford Bridge, Jose Mourinho followed in Ferguson's footsteps when he rested two of his star players: Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard. The visitors took an unlikely 19th minute lead through Slovakian debutant Lubomir Michalik, but Ivorian striker Salomon Kalou headed in the equalizer three minutes later. Kalou was involved again in Chelsea's 34th minute second goal, when his header bounced off the bar and into Jussi Jaaskelainen's feet to cross the line. Drogba's halftime introduction didn't offer much help to the Blues, as Bolton were not finished yet. Nine minutes after the break, Kevin Davies headed in a shocking equalizer to deny Mourinho's men a precious win.
