Ryan Giggs: Missing you already... - PremCorrespondent

No meaningful football for almost two weeks! This must be the longest break since the big freeze of 1963, when your correspondent was obliged to light bonfires on the pitch to thaw the ground - in April! Undersoil heating has put a stop to that (and promoted the global warming that means that undersoil heating isn't necessary after all). So, with England qualified for the World Cup and very few people caring much about how the Scots, Irish (x2) and Welsh manage to fail this time round, the maw that is the football media needed something to fill it until the team news starts filtering through on October 16. So it's a big thanks to Sir Alex Ferguson, whose criticism of referee Alan Wiley's fitness has given everyone something to be sanctimonious about until "Rooney - injury scare?" takes over next week. Is there no end to this Scotsman's commitment to English football?

The games themselves. Portsmouth found a new owner, a win and a referee who was the only person in Molineux who failed to see a blatant penalty box handball. Wolves will have their chance to avenge that injustice next season - in the Championship. In the other Saturday games, Hull got a much needed win over Wigan, not that it'll keep them in the Premier League and Burnley got their usual home win, this time over Birmingham, whose Sebastian Larsson failed even to raise his arm after scoring in the last minute proving again that a "consolation goal" should be called a "no consolation goal" (as we all know). And Manchester United were behind for all but 15 minutes of their home game to Sunderland, but still salvaged a point, which either shows great self-belief or an unhealthy reliance on an absent 36 year-old. Tottenham either got a good point at Bolton or surrendered two vital points - being Tottenham, we just don't know and probably never will.

Come Sunday, Arsenal took turns to shoot the ball into the net against Blackburn with six of the youngsters getting to run around looking smug - especially Bendtner - but you don't win trophies by letting goals in at home, as Arsene has proved for years now. The two Blackburn goals told more than Arsenal's six about where they will finish in May. Everton and Fulham eked out post-Europa League draws, as the fixture burden stymies any chance they have of kicking on from last year's high placings, whilst Stoke consolidated admirable mid-tableness and West Ham wait for their season to start. The big one saw Chelsea's huge beasts run over a Liverpool XI that had Lucas in centre-midfield and therefore will never win anything of substance. Monday finished off football for a yawning eternity with little to separate Villa and Citeh, as, indeed, there will be at the end of the season.

Man of the Weekend was the fourth official at Old Trafford, who failed either to deck Sir Alex or to laugh at his antics. Win of the Weekend's was Chelsea's, showing that last week's defeat was a blip and that they are back on track for what should be a comfortable Title. Loss of the Weekend was Ryan Giggs - he is needed to provide elegance and dignity to his league and club, both of which lack those qualities without him. I'm off to hibernate.