Jose off to winning start

Obviously eager to impress their new boss, Chelsea fought hard on a warm, sultry afternoon, demonstrating great team spirit and commitment.

But Mourinho conceded that their football on the opening day lacked the quality necessary to sustain a championship bid. Frank Lampard, given a free role behind the front two, was unusually subdued and saw little of the ball ball despite the fact that the absence of wingers Damien Duff and Arjen Robben forced Chelsea to attack through the middle.

Chelsea's two most consistent contributors were John Terry, such a powerhouse in the heart of the defence, and Eidur Gudjohnsen, scorer of the only goal and, in the long term I suspect, a very good influence on Didier Drogba.

We have to give Mourinho and his team time to develop and mature but, on yesterday's evidence, the defending champions Arsenal - 4-1 victors at Everton - are a class apart.

Mourinho wants his team to play with Arsenal's panache but it takes time. Drogba, the Premiership's costliest striker, looked big and awkward and although his header set up Gudjohnsen's goal, quite what makes him a £23million striker is not yet apparent.

Goalkeeper Petr Cech, a Chelsea debutant like Drogba, did not really have enough to do for the fans to judge him against last season's No1 Carlo Cudicini.

There is no doubt that Portugal right-back Paulo Ferreira is a high-class act, though perhaps the most impressive of the newcomers was Russian Alexei Smertin, who after a season on loan at Portsmouth finally had the chance to show the Chelsea fans what he could do.

"I think he's a really useful player with a lot of spirit," said Mourinho. The Portuguese coach places great value on dressing-room harmony - a key element in Porto's success. "We deserved to beat United because of our team spirit," he insisted.

"Mentally, we played as a team. Everyone gave 100 per cent, plus a bit more. When they fight like this it gives me great hope for the future."

As United's second-half revival gathered momentum, Mourinho showed that he was quite happy to sacrifice spectacle for security. He is a more practical coach than his predecessor Ranieri who was prone to eccentric decisions at key moments.

"I had to make changes in the second half because the game was in United's hands," he said. "Sir Alex pushed me to make changes that I would not normally make."

Could Mourinho fulfil Roman Abramovich's costly ambition 50 years after Ted Drake's team won the old First Division title? It would be a remarkable achievement if he came up with a Championship-winning formula in his first season.

"Sir Alex has had Manchester United for 17 years," he said. "Arsene Wenger has had Arsenal for seven years. I've had Chelsea for seven weeks."

But Mourinho clearly enjoyed his day - even the derision heaped on him by the United fans behind the Chelsea dug out.

"I gave them some autographs at half-time," he smiled. "The atmosphere was tremendous. In Portugal you'd get that kind of atmosphere only four times a season. But this is England, isn't it. I'm very happy to be here."