Antonio Conte: Chelsea boss unhappy with Jose Mourinho's 'joking' - BBC Sport
Antonio Conte does not like Jose Mourinho's "joking" after the Man Utd boss said Chelsea cannot be caught because they are a defensive team.
Last updated on .From the section Football

Antonio Conte says he does not like Jose Mourinho's "joking" after the Manchester United boss said Premier League leaders Chelsea cannot be caught because they are a "defensive team".

Conte's side are 10 points clear at the top after Sunday's 1-1 draw at Burnley.

Mourinho, known for trying to engage in mind games with his rivals, said his former team will not slip up because they win with "counter attacks".

"He's playing," said Conte, who is in his first season as Chelsea manager.

"I have the experience to understand this."

Mourinho was speaking after Manchester United beat Watford 2-0 on Saturday to extend their unbeaten run to 16 games. They are sixth in the table, 12 points behind Chelsea.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has previously accused Mourinho of playing mind games, as did Sir Alex Ferguson when he was at Manchester United and Mourinho was in charge at Stamford Bridge.

However, Conte said: "I don't like to reply about the other coaches."

Chelsea are firmly on course for a second Premier League title in three seasons but endured one of their toughest games of the season at Burnley.

The Clarets have the third-best home record in the top flight, with 29 of their 30 points coming at Turf Moor.

They restricted Chelsea to just two shots on target on Sunday - none in the second half - and could have won the game but for a superb Thibaut Courtois save from Matt Lowton.

"The pitch is small and this is better for the team that has to defend and play this long ball," said Conte.

"You have less pitch to cover and then there is a good atmosphere with the supporters and I think it's good.

"We found a team that thought to disrupt our football, to play this long ball and to fight the second ball."

We've been here before?

Mourinho has often engaged in psychological battles with his rivals.

When he was Chelsea boss in 2014, he ruled the Blues out of a title battle with Manchester City and also challenged then City boss Manuel Pellegrini over his spending. Pellegrini chose to ignore his counterpart's comments.

The Portuguese also accused Wenger of being a "specialist in failure" that same year and then claimed the Arsenal manager was "not a rival" when Chelsea were on course for the 2014-15 Premier League title.