ALEX Ferguson insists Manchester United's English Premier League title challenge is still alive despite being eight points off the pace.

The Red Devils missed a glorious chance to close the gap on leaders Chelsea and second-placed Liverpool to six points, with a game in hand.

But, after the top two had earlier both been held to 0-0 draws, United turned in a subdued performance on Saturday at Villa Park - a ground where they had won on their 11 previous visits - and were themselves held to a goalless stalemate.

It might have been worse for Ferguson had referee Chris Foy not turned down loud home appeals for a second-half penalty.

United were the better side in the opening 45 minutes although clear-cut chances were at a premium.

In the second period, it was Villa who looked the more likely to make the breakthrough as they hustled the visitors out of their stride for long spells with James Milner in splendid form.

Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel was called into meaningful action for the first time after 14 minutes to turn aside a swerving drive from Cristiano Ronaldo, who had cut inside the recalled Nigel Reo-Coker with ease.

The game opened up more towards half-time and Ashley Young produced a superb tackle to deny Park Ji Sung in the Villa box as the South Korean prepared to shoot after being found in space by Rooney.

O'Neill was incensed when referee Chris Foy awarded no foul against Nemanja Vidic after he held on to the shirt of Gabriel Agbonlahor when the striker was in full flight as he cut in from the left flank into the penalty area,

However, the home side were relieved to see Rooney squander a golden opportunity after 62 minutes.

Off-target

Michael Carrick's overhead kick dropped into the path of the England striker, who volleyed high and wide when he would have been expected to at least hit the target.

Third-placed United could fall further behind in the title race when they travel to Japan next month to take part in the 2008 Club World Cup.

'We are going to be two games behind when we get to January. But I think we can make it up,' Ferguson said of the gap between United and the leaders.

'If we can get to within two or three points of the leaders by New Year's Day it would be a great feeling for us. It would put us in with a great chance.

'It's not difficult, not with our club. We're capable of winning runs as everyone knows.'

O'Neill felt Villa deserved their share of the spoils which followed on from the 2-0 success at Arsenal last weekend.

He said: 'We tried to perform in the same way. We didn't create as many chances as at Arsenal but tried to replicate the play.

'It is very difficult against United. They are great players who can turn games but we stuck at it and deserved something.

'These have been two big games for us after losing to Newcastle and Middlesbrough and will help to give the players great self-belief.

'We have now played the top four sides and have lost only once although we were well beaten at Chelsea.

'It is exceptionally hard to break into the top four but we are aiming for that sort of thing. The players are improving and have a good confidence about themselves.'

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AISHAH HAMZA speaks to football analyst TERRY PATHMANATHAN, who believes that Aston Villa can break into the top four

Despite their poor record against Manchester United, Aston Villa did well to hold them to a goalless draw. Do you think Villa can gatecrash the top four teams at the end of the season?

Terry: I think they are a team to be reckoned with. Not only did they just beat Arsenal, they also did well enough to hold Man United to a goalless draw. They have a well-balanced team with young players like Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young and James Milner doing well alongside more experienced players such as Brad Friedel, John Carew and Martin Laursen.

Martin O'Neill is one of the better manager to motivate a lesser team to step up and take the challenge. As a result, Villa have become a very disciplined and well-organised team. As long as they maintain consistency and avoid injury, they should be able to push the so-called Big Four teams to the limit and might even overtake one of them.

THE RACE is still wide open. Manchester United have always been known to leapfrog big teams at the last moment.

The only Big Four team that is under tremendous pressure at the moment is Arsenal. So far they've shown a lot of character and Arsene Wenger has always been confident of his youth system. But things aren't quite falling into place right now for them what with the in-fighting and the defeats. They could be in danger of dropping out of the top four at the end of the season.

I THOUGHT Tevez wasn't doing much as a striker. He was dropping back into the packed midfield trying to wriggle his way out. He should have tried to pull the defence away instead.

Manchester United just couldn't penetrate the tight Villa backline. Here is where Dimitar Berbatov's defence-splitting passes could have come in handy. His style of play was definitely missed. Tevez was just not effective in that position. Maybe Ferguson can better utilise him as a winger on the right flank.

I THINK he's feeling a lot of pressure because everybody expects him to at least score a goal and be right at the top. It's definitely not easy to maintain such form. He is a very committed and aggressive player. He's always hungry for a win and works very hard. But sometimes when you work too hard, you end up squandering chances. Rooney should just keep calm and not rush his shots.