Man Utd close in on title

By Mike Collett

LONDON (Reuters) - Manchester United took a huge step towards retaining their Premier League title on Saturday, beating West Ham United 4-1 despite playing more than half the match with 10 men.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice at Old Trafford and Carlos Tevez and Michael Carrick netted against their old club as Manchester United moved to 84 points with one match to play.

If the leaders win at Wigan Athletic on May 11 they will be champions of England for the 17th time.

Second-placed Chelsea, who visit Newcastle United on Monday, have 81 points but a vastly inferior goal difference.

At the other end of the table Bolton Wanderers virtually guaranteed their safety while Fulham continued their revival to earn a fighting chance of avoiding the drop.

Bolton beat Sunderland 2-0 at the Reebok Stadium, El Hadji Diouf's effort and an own goal by Daryl Murphy giving them 36 points ahead of their game at Chelsea next week.

Wanderers remain 16th, three points clear of Fulham after Roy Hodgson's men overcame relegation rivals Birmingham City 2-0 at Craven Cottage to rise from 19th to 17th.

Goals from Brian McBride and Erik Nevland helped Fulham climb above Birmingham and Reading, who dropped into the relegation zone after losing 1-0 at home to Tottenham Hotspur in their sixth successive match without a goal.