A fast and fluid Tottenham Hotspur [ Images ] floored Premier League leaders Chelsea [ Images ] 2-1 on Saturday in a lively London [ Images ] derby to give a massive boost for Manchester United's [ Images ] hopes of retaining the title.

United, who started the day four points adrift of Chelsea, ended it just a point behind with three matches remaining and everything to play for after beating Manchester City [ Images ] 1-0 with a last-gasp goal from Paul Scholes.

Chelsea remain on 77 points while United have 76 and third-placed Arsenal [ Images ], who visit struggling Wigan Athletic on Sunday, are on 71 with a game in hand.

Jermain Defoe [ Images ] opened the scoring for Spurs at White Hart Lane with a 15th minute penalty after a handball by Chelsea captain John Terry [ Images ], who had a nightmare evening and was sent off in the 66th minute for a second yellow card.

Gareth Bale had hammered in Tottenham's second goal just before halftime with a low shot past Petr Cech [ Images ] at the near post that left the visitors reeling.

As the clock ticked towards 90 minutes, 10-man Chelsea were lucky not to have conceded more goals as Spurs fans began to celebrate -- only for the chants of 'Ole' to stick in their throats when Frank Lampard [ Images ] pulled a goal back in stoppage time.

But Chelsea's response came too late to affect the outcome.

In Manchester, United had all the luck in a sunlit derby at Eastlands where veteran midfielder Paul Scholes celebrated his new contract by burying a header in the dying seconds just when the visitors' hopes of victory had seemed buried.

While United manager Alex Ferguson [ Images ] will doubtless ring Tottenham's Harry Redknapp [ Images ] to thank him for services rendered, Spurs had plenty of motivation of their own in a lively and at times hot-tempered London derby.

Fighting for the final Champions League [ Images ] qualifying slot after beating north London rivals Arsenal 2-1 on Wednesday, Tottenham;s victory moved them into the coveted fourth place on 64 points and ahead of Manchester City on 62.