19/03/2006  Fulham 1 Chelsea 0
 
Boa Morte's first-half goal took the points from the champions on a day when Mourinho tried to quash speculation surrounding his future.

The Blues finished with 10-men when William Gallas was sent off for a nasty tackle on Heidar Helguson.

And they were caught up in controversy when Didier Drogba handled the ball in an attempt to claim an equaliser.

The Chelsea striker celebrated the goal as if nothing had happened but an eagle-eyed linesman spotted the "Hand of Drog" and referee Mike Dean wiped it out.

Fulham fans invaded the pitch and celebrated as if they had won the title.

But they have probably secured their top-flight survival with their first Premiership win over their neighbours.

Mourinho had been at pains before kick-off to insist he was not about to walk out of Stamford Bridge, despite reports that he was preparing to join Inter Milan.

The Chelsea boss, who has not uttered a public word since losing to Barcelona, spoke up in a bid to quash the rumours.

He said: "There is no way I will be at Inter Milan next season. I promise you I will be the Chelsea manager. I have a contract with Chelsea until 2010 and I fully intend to see that out."

If Mourinho was annoyed by the speculation, his mood could not have improved as he watched his team's sloppy opening against Chris Coleman's spirited Fulham.

The Blues made the short trip across west London, knowing five more wins would secure their second-successive title, but they were soon on the back-foot.

Coleman's team emerged with purpose and seemed to stun their millionaire rivals.

They could have been awarded a penalty before taking the lead through Boa Morte in the 17th minute.

Mourinho, fuming on the touchline, hauled off Joe Cole and Shaun Wright-Phillips midway through the first half. Then he replaced Robert Huth with Ricardo Carvalho at half-time.

It certainly was not the ruthless blue machine who have swept all before them on the domestic front this season.

Fulham deserve great credit for approaching the game positively and Zat Knight was immense at the back.

Mourinho is said to admire Coleman's style but the Fulham boss will prefer points to compliments.

Fulham thought they had a penalty in the sixth minute. Moritz Volz, terrorised by Thierry Henry on his last game at Craven Cottage, raided forward down the Fulham right.

Steed Malbranque slipped a pass to his over-lapping full-back and Volz beat John Terry in a race to the ball.

Volz toe-poked the ball past Terry's lunging tackle, hurdled the Blues skipper and threw himself to the turf just inside the Chelsea penalty box.

It was a tough call for referee Dean. Terry certainly did not take the ball but there was no contact because Volz had evaded the challenge by throwing himself in the air.

The referee awarded a goal-kick to the fury of the home crowd but they were soon cheering.

Boa Morte launched another attack down the left and cut a pass inside to Malbranque.

His shot from 20-yards was blocked by Terry but it spun dangerously towards Petr Cech's goal.

Paulo Ferreira tried the lash the ball to safety but his clearance only smacked into Boa Morte and flew into the net.

Mourinho reacted swiftly to his team's disappointing start, sending on Damien Duff and Drogba for Cole and Wright-Phillips in the 26th minute.

But his champions looked rattled. Huth was booked when he wiped-out Boa Morte out with a clumsy mistimed challenge.

Petr Cech rescued his team when he raced from his line to smother a shot from Collins John.

Controversy erupted again in the 58th minute when Dean ruled out a Drogba goal for handball.

The referee appeared to give the goal at first as Drogba seized on confusion between goalkeeper Mark Crossley and Knight to take the ball round the pair and roll it into an empty net.

The Chelsea team celebrated and returned to their own half for the restart - but Boa Morte led the Fulham team in protest. They persuaded Dean to speak to his linesman and, after an in-depth discussion, the ref awarded Fulham a free-kick for handball.

Television replays suggested his final decision was spot-on. Drogba clearly used his right hand to tip the ball past the Fulham keeper before tapping it into the net and claiming a goal.

The home fans went wild as they celebrated their reversal of fortune but Chelsea and Mourinho looked crestfallen and bewildered.

It added extra spice to a game which had pulsed with excitement all the way through.

Boa Morte tested Cech, while Gallas had a header cleared off the line at the other end.

Drogba smacked a header onto the bar and Carvalho planted a free header well wide when he should have done better.

Frank Lampard then side-footed a wonderful chance over the bar after fine work on the left by Duff.