After their hard-fought 1-0 win over Everton Ferguson's side have not conceded for 1,122 minutes, a new English league football record.

Ferguson acknowledged that achievement by saluting his backline, and saved special praise for Edwin van der Sar after the Dutch goalkeeper helped ensure Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty was enough to win the game.

"It's a fantastic performance from the boys. I couldn't believe it when I read that the last goal we conceded was against Arsenal in October," he said.

"Van der Sar brings calmness and assurance. Over the last 12 games we have changed the back four I don't know how many times so you have to give great credit to them."

Aston Villa boss Martin O'Neill remained upbeat despite his team failing to take the opportunity to climb into second spot after a goalless draw at home to Wigan.

He said: "We didn't score - but in terms of effort we were relentless in the second half.

"We just couldn't force the ball over the line. It wasn't going to be our day.

"But in terms of application and effort, we were terrific again. I was proud of them - and I told them so afterwards.

"On another day, we could have scored three or four times - and the fact we didn't was not down to a lack of effort."

The pressure on Portsmouth manager Tony Adams further increased after he saw his side crash to a 3-1 defeat in their match at Fulham.

However, when asked if he had any concerns for his managerial future, Adams replied: "No, I don't think so. It is all good at the moment."

Arsenal's push for Champions League qualification was dealt another blow as they failed to break down West Ham at the Emirates Stadium.

"We gave everything for 90 minutes and restricted them to nothing," said Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger.

"There was a great desire and I could not fault the spirit, but we did lack some creativity in the final ball and some sharpness because we had played a difficult game on Wednesday night at Everton."

Elsewhere on Saturday Kevin Davies scored twice to give Bolton a 3-2 victory over Tottenham in a five-goal thriller at the Reebok Stadium.

Ten-man Stoke moved out of the relegation zone with a vital 1-0 win over Manchester City in the lunch-time kick-off at the Britannia Stadium.

The Potters had Rory Delap sent off just before the end of the first half but James Beattie's header in first-half injury time was enough to seal the win and lift Tony Pulis' side up to 16th.

Chris Brunt's late penalty grabbed a crucial point for West Brom in a 2-2 draw at Hull to deny the Tigers their first win in seven.

Middlesbrough and Blackburn both ended the day in the relegation zone after they played out a 0-0 draw at the Riverside Stadium.