Manchester City 0 – 0 Manchester United

A Manchester derby that promised so much delivered precious little as City and United ground out a goalless stalemate at Eastlands. At least for Roberto Mancini’s men there was no injury-time heartache after suffering three such defeats last term.For United, who controlled long periods, their unbeaten run in all competitions now stretches to 25 games.In truth, the result only suited Chelsea, giving credence to Mancini’s belief that these warring factions are actually scrapping for second spot at best.

Manchester United 2 – 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers:Park brace downs brave Wolves

Park Ji-Sung scored a superb late winner to hand a below-par Manchester United victory over Wolves.Deep into stoppage time the South Korea midfielder drifted in from the right and cut inside two challenges before firing into the near bottom corner.Sylvan Ebanks-Blake equalised for the visitors with a great turn-and-shot before Park slotted in the winner.Earlier, United’s Owen Hargreaves lasted just six minutes on his return to the team after a two-year lay-off.He limped off with what appeared to be a hamstring strain following his shock inclusion and the former Bayern Munich player now faces another spell on the sidelines.Having played only one minute of senior football since September 2008, it would be fair to question Red Devils manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s decision to play him from the start.

Bolton Wanderers 4 – 2 Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham, conquerors of Champions League holders Inter Milan in midweek, had to settle for second best at the Reebok Stadium despite a rousing comeback.Trailing 3-0 they scored twice in the last 11 minutes thanks to Alan Hutton and substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko.However Martin Petrov stepped off the bench to seal Bolton’s victory in stoppage time with a fine solo effort.Tottenham have never achieved a league victory at the ground and manager Harry Redknapp will wonder how they failed to build on their famous win in midweek.Certainly they missed Rafael van der Vaart and Aaron Lennon, who are both suffering from hamstring injuries.

Rochdale 2-3 FC United

Manchester derbies may soon take on a new meaning. The traditional powers, City and United, meet on Wednesday but FC United of Manchester are now only a game away from a possible FA Cup encounter with the club they both salute and decry after winning 3-2 at Rochdale in the first round.Mike Norton’s 94th-minute goal shows that FC United have inherited Manchester United’s tradition of dramatic winners. It carried the Evo-Stik Premier Division side into the second round of the FA Cup as they marked their debut with a performance of assurance and by making themselves heard. A noisy and colourful evening involved fireworks, a brief pitch invasion and a variety of chants, from the new and the novel to those aired regularly at Old Trafford. “Are you watching, David Gill?” they taunted Manchester United’s chief executive, who has allied himself with the Glazers.

Zaragoza 0-2 Barcelona: Lionel Messi Brace Downs Ten-Man Aragons

A brace by Lionel Messi decided a fairly one-sided affair at La Romareda as Barcelona ascended to the top of the standings, albeit temporarily. The Argentinian opened the scoring in the waning minutes of the first half and added a second after the break, while Leonardo Ponzio saw red for the Aragons in-between.Despite having the lion’s share of possession, Barcelona looked unable to break down a resolute Zaragoza defence. Surprisingly the first real chance of the game fell to the hosts when in the 19th minute Brauilo was released through on goal, but scrambled what would prove to be the only clear-cut chance for his team.

Iniesta: Confidence is sky high

“This is the most important match in our history,” said Iker Casillas in reference to Spain’s South Africa 2010 semi-final against Germany on Wednesday. Though the Germans are in irresistible form, the European champions know what it takes to beat them, having overcome the same opposition in the final of UEFA EURO 2008.