Arsenal win hands Man Utd 8-point lead

Manchester United moved eight points clear in the Premier League title race on Sunday by beating Queens Park Rangers 2-0 while Manchester City, who had Mario Balotelli sent off, crashed to a 1-0 defeat at Arsenal.

With only six matches to play United, who trailed City for most of the season until going top a month ago, have 79 points while their faltering Manchester neighbours have 71.

Arsenal, whose winning goal from Mikel Arteta came after 87 minutes, are third on 61 points, two ahead of arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur who drew 0-0 at Sunderland on Saturday.

Balotelli, already sent off once this season and banned for a stamp on Tottenham's Scott Parker, now risks missing most of the rest of the run-in because of a lengthy ban.

United won at Old Trafford thanks to a dubious 15th-minute penalty from Wayne Rooney and a trademark 68th-minute long-range shot by Paul Scholes.

QPR were reduced to 10 men as a result of the penalty incident when Shaun Derry was sent off for what was the softest of touches on United winger Ashley Young who appeared to dive.

City's faint hopes of winning the Premier League may finally be over after Mikel Arteta curled the ball inside the post in the 87th minute as Arsenal's dominance paid off to consolidate third place.

City had topped the table for most of the season but Manchester United has seized on its neighbour's collapse over the last month to surge eight points clear with six games remaining.

Even United's 2-0 victory over Queens Park Rangers earlier on Sunday provided no incentive for City's players to attempt to revive the free-flowing, attacking football that was their hallmark earlier in the season.

Instead it was an indisciplined, sloppy display at the Emirates Stadium from a side that has been built with more than $1 billion of Abu Dhabi investment.

Balotelli was dismissed in the 90th minute when he was booked again for a lunge on Bacary Sagna. Before receiving his fourth red card since joining City in 2010, a dangerous-looking knee-high tackle on Alex Song had gone unpunished in the first half.

The victory marked the latest step in Arsenal's resurgence since overhauling Tottenham's 10-point lead in third to now sit two points clear of its north London rival, which has dropped into the fourth Champions League spot.

"It's really important for us as there are a few teams putting pressure on us for a place in the Champions League," Arteta said. "We dropped points last week so this was a massive three points. It was a good goal against a good team who have spent a lot of money."

Earlier, Manchester United moved into an eight-point lead at the top of the English Premier League with a 2-0 win over 10-man QPR at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Goals from Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes saw United to victory but Rooney's opener was controversial.

The England striker gave United a 15th minute lead from the penalty spot after QPR captain Shaun Derry was sent off for bringing down Ashley Young inside the area and was deemed by referee Lee Mason to have denied a clear goalscoring chance.

Mason's decision was harsh on Rangers, who are still above the relegation zone on goal difference. Derry's contact appeared minimal and Young looked to be offside.

But even though QPR keeper Paddy Kenny correctly dived to his right, Rooney's well-struck penalty gave him his 30th goal of the season and left the visitors, managed by former United striker Mark Hughes, with a mountain to climb.

Kenny saved from Rafael da Silva and Danny Welbeck to keep QPR in the game until the 68th minute when he was beaten by a 20-yard shot from veteran midfielder Scholes, recalled from retirement this season by United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. 

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