Soccer: Nelsen back in action

New Zealand soccer captain Ryan Nelsen returned to action for his English premier league side Blackburn Rovers today.

The central defender played 57 minutes of the 0-0 draw with Manchester United as a substitute, after missing their last six matches due to a knee injury.

Nelsen, who is set to lead the All Whites at the World Cup in South Africa in June, began today's match on the bench and was introduced by manager Sam Allardyce in the 33rd minute.

A victory would have put United a point ahead of Chelsea in the title race but Antonio Valencia and Dimitar Berbatov both missed chances at Ewood Park.

Chelsea, which now leads the league by one point, has the chance to go four clear of United by beating Bolton at home on Wednesday (NZT).

Manchester City strengthened its hold on fourth place with a 5-1 victory over Birmingham.

Carlos Tevez stroked home a 38th-minute penalty and added a second when he touched in a header from Nedum Onuoha. Emmanuel Adebayor made it three before he and Onuoha scored further goals to move City on to 62 points from 33 games. Tottenham has 58 from 32.

Without injured striker Fernando Torres, Liverpool was held 0-0 at home by Fulham to lose more ground on City in the race for fourth. Rafa Benitez's sixth-place team now has 56 points from 34 games, with Aston Villa next on 54 from 32.

Wolves edged closer to safety with a 0-0 draw at home to mid-table Stoke and is now six points above the relegation zone with four games still to play.

Meanwhile, Nelsen will have New Zealand company in the premier league next season after Chris Woods' West Bromwich Albion guaranteed themselves promotion from the Championship.

The All Whites striker's team beat Doncaster 3-2 yesterday to ensure themselves a top-two finish in the Championship, earning them automatic promotion for 2010-11.

- NZPA, AP