After watching Chelsea come from behind to secure a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, José Mourinho made a forceful point of his own, claiming that Manchester United had wasted a “big, big chance” to forge ahead at the top of the Barclays Premiership. The master of the mind games is at it again.

Ricardo Carvalho’s second-half equaliser to Louis Saha’s magnificent first-half strike for United keeps Chelsea three points behind the leaders, but Mourinho insists that his team have the psychological edge. The champions may need such mental toughness because, having run away with the league for the past two seasons, they face the unenviable task of having to come from behind.

“Manchester United had a big, big chance to open the gap to six points,” Mourinho said. “We won a point on Arsenal on a weekend when people thought we could lose points on them. It’s a fair result and it’s better for us. They faced this game very strong from the mental point of view, with the aim of increasing the gap. If I was them I would be very disappointed.

“We’ve kept the gap the same and now have one more point over Arsenal. It was first versus second, but at the home of the first, and if I was them I would be very frustrated.

They’re playing at home, they’re first and they have a good chance to open the gap, but they do not. I would be very frustrated by that.”

As the sparring from a competitive contest continued off the pitch, Sir Alex Ferguson hit back by claiming that his team had played the better football, which was certainly true in an absorbing first half, but his players told a different story. The home team appeared to be settling for a point long before the end and Michael Carrick admitted that they ran out of steam.

“We’re frustrated,” the England midfield player said. “Going ahead in a game like this, we should win the game, but we conceded the goal from a sloppy set-piece. We feel that has cost us.”

Ferguson conceded that Chelsea would be happier with the point after seeing United’s run of seven successive Premiership wins come to an end, but he predicted that his team would bounce back and take the title race right to the end of the season. The United manager praised the contribution of Saha, who, along with Cristiano Ronaldo, should be fit for Wednesday’s visit of Everton, despite being substituted before the end after suffering injuries.

“I’m satisfied with the performance,” Ferguson said. “It showed that when we hit the heights we play the best football in the country at the moment. Today we had a big opportunity to go six points clear and didn’t manage it and Chelsea are delighted with that.

“But if we want to win the championship, we have to repeat the consistency we’ve shown so far. It looks like it’s going to be nip and tuck, but the way we’ve played so far this season gives us lots of confidence. With the consistency both sides have shown it could go all the way.”

Mourinho agreed that the title race could go to the wire, but he insisted that his team are in a better position. For all his protestations to the contrary, he appears to be relishing the challenge.

“We know in the second half of the season Manchester United have to go to Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool,” he said. “They will have a very difficult time. For me, the surprise is what we did last season with a lead of ten or 15 points. A lead of three, four or six points is what we expect in the Premiership. We can go all the way and are ready, but it would excite me to have 20 points more.”

Having ended what by their standards was a disastrous run of two successive away defeats, Chelsea’s credentials will be further tested away to Bolton Wanderers on Wednesday, particularly after Sam Allardyce’s team received the confidence boost of beating Arsenal 3-1 at the Reebok on Saturday.