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CHELSEA boss Jose Mourinho insisted yesterday that the Blues will not suffer the same fate as London rivals Arsenal did last season following their Old Trafford defeat.

Chelsea's 40-game unbeaten Premiership run came to a dramatic end with a 1-0 defeat at Manchester United on Sunday, just as Arsenal's own 49match streak without a defeat bit the dust 12 months ago.

The Gunners suffered so badly in the aftermath that they picked up just six points in their next five games, a run which proved the catalyst for the loss of their League title.

But while Chelsea's lead at the top has been reduced to six points with second-placed Wigan also having a game in hand, Mourinho insists his side have proved they have the character to bounce back despite last week's Champions League setback against Real Betis.

"In a sense, we have already bounced back. It was still a defeat but the difference between the United game and the one in Betis was huge," said Mourinho.

"Against Betis the attitude was poor, the performance was poor, the pace of the game was poor, the effort was poor. I was really upset with the defeat.

"But when you see a team perfor m like they did on Sunday, in a very difficult stadium against a big team, with very good players who were desperate to get a result and fought with everything they had, it doesn't make me afraid for the future.

"I believe we showed yesterday why we are champions and why we are top of the league. We are not happy at the defeat but we are calm and confident because we know we did enough to get a different result.

"There is no more pressure on us. Manchester United have to win their game in hand just to be seven points behind. They are the ones under pressure, there are no problems for us."

Despite Wigan's recent form, Mourinho will be looking for his side to respond by grabbing a positive result when they resume their quest for back-to-back championships with a home encounter with Newcastle on Nov 19.

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