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London. Manchester United went top of the English Premier League by winning 1-0 at Wolves and cash-strapped Portsmouth beat Birmingham 2-0 to reach the FA Cup semifinals on Saturday.

Paul Scholes scored the only goal after 73 minutes at Molineux as United overcame the loss of 28-goal Wayne Rooney, who was sidelined with a knee injury, and moved two points ahead of Chelsea and Arsenal, which beat next-to-last Burnley 3-1. Chelsea has a game in hand on both.

The Wolverhampton Wanderers’ defense failed to clear a cross from Nani and Scholes moved the ball into space inside a crowded area to beat goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann with an angled shot for his 100th Premier League goal.

Wolves striker Sam Vokes squandered a golden chance to equalize in stoppage time when he was found unmarked in front of goal but lifted the ball over the bar from six meters.

Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas fired home Samir Nasri’s cross in the 34th minute for his 17th league and cup goal of the season, but he went off with what appeared to be a right-hamstring injury before halftime.

“How big the damage is we don’t know yet because it’s too early,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, whose team faces FC Porto in the Champions League on Tuesday and has to overturn a 2-1 deficit.

David Nugent equalized from Leon Cort’s pass, but Theo Walcott restored Arsenal’s lead in the 60th minute for his first goal in 18 appearances, and Andrey Arshavin added the third in injury time.

In Saturday’s other Premier League game, Bolton won 2-1 at West Ham to improve its chances of avoiding relegation and push the home side deeper into trouble. Kevin Davies headed the first from close range and provided the cross for Jack Wilshere to score his first goal for Bolton since his loan move from Arsenal.

Alessandro Diamanti’s reply for West Ham came only two minutes from the end. The victory moved Bolton up to 13th and five points above the relegation zone, while West Ham is only three points away from danger.

In FA Cup action, Frederic Piquionne scored twice in four minutes to give Portsmouth victory over Birmingham as the club reached the semifinals two years after winning football’s oldest domestic cup competition.

The visitors were unhappy that referee Steve Bennett ruled out a goal that TV replays showed crossed the line. Portsmouth, which is in financial administration and last in the Premier League, was 2-0 ahead when Liam Ridgewell’s 81st-minute close-range header for Birmingham crossed the line before goalkeeper David James blocked it. However, Bennett ruled it was not a goal.

Asked if Birmingham scored a goal, James said: “Not as far as I was aware.

“We won 2-0 as far as the score goes, and I think we deserved it.”

Fulham and Tottenham fought out a 0-0 draw at Craven Cottage in a quarterfinal. Tottenham’s Vedran Corluka almost turned a cross into his own net with a minute to go.

 

Associated Press