Chelsea's manager José Mourinho - REUTERS
LONDON (AP)
CHELSEA LEARNED WHAT other English Premier League teams already know: Fulham are tough to beat at home.
Despite struggling with rele-gation, Fulham stunned west London rivals Chelsea 1-0 yester-day at Craven Cottage. It was only Chelsea's third league loss in 30 games this season.
The loss, however, means little to Chelsea, who lead second-place Manchester United by 12 points. But the three points could save Fulham from going down.
"It's more than just the three points today," Fulham manager Chris Coleman said. "What better team to do it against than the champions of the country and the best team in the country."
Luis Boa Morte got Fulham's winner in the 17th, scoring left-footed from close range off a deflected shot by teammate Steed Malbranque.
Chelsea manager José Mour-inho, who has denied reports he may move to Inter Milan, quickly changed his starting line-up and pulled Joe Cole and Shaun Wright-Phillips in the 26th, replaced with Damien Duff and Didier Drogba.
It almost paid off.
Drogba appeared to have scored in the 59th when he drove a left-footed shot home. But the goal was disallowed when he was ruled to have handled the ball.
William Gallas was sent off in injury time after fouling Fulham forward Heidar Helguson on the sideline. The two teams then scuffled briefly.
Criticised for seldom giving other teams credit, Mourinho was gracious in defeat and con-gratulated Coleman.
"In the middle of being unhappy I can feel a little bit of happiness for Chris (Coleman) because he's a great guy, a great manager," Mourinho said.
Mourinho agreed that Drogba had handled the ball, but said referee Mike Dean only changed his mind after being pressured by Fulham players.
"The decision is correct, but they did it not because they saw it," Mourinho said. "They did it because of the pressure on them."
Manchester United have played one fewer game than Chelsea and could cut the lead to nine.
"I'm not worried with that," Mourinho said. "I think nine points with eight matches to go is a very comfortable situation for us."
Chelsea lead with 75 points, followed by Man United with 63 and Liverpool with 61. Liverpool have played two more games than Man United.
The victory gave Fulham 35 points, 11 above the last teams in the relegation zone - Birmingham City and Portsmouth.
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