Chelsea 1, Man United 1: Mourinho's new mood blighted by loss and looming injury crisis

From his place on the bench even Jose Mourinho found it hard to suppress a smile at the appaling success his team endured from the penalty spot – and he is not known for making light of failure. On the English football season's great irrelevant opening day, Edwin van der Sar was the hero but the atmosphere was soon a good deal chillier around the Chelsea manager as the start of his campaign threatened to disintegrate.

While Manchester United walked off with the Community Shield, polished even brighter than the alloys on a Premiership footballer's Hummer, Sir Alex Ferguson could talk optimistically about Carlos Tevez's debut this week. For Mourinho there was only more injury misery; he now has 11 players out injured, and already the siege mentality was descending upon the Chelsea manager.

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The mellow attitude he has claimed to have adopted looks like it will be severely tested in the next few weeks. Ferguson waits only upon Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in terms of injuries – Mourinho has a much more serious problem. John Terry's absence will be for a month at the very least, while Didier Drogba will find out today how serious the problem with his knee has become.

Days like yesterday may be the opportunity for experimentation but Mourinho admitted that he had never before been forced to pick a side that did not include an orthodox striker. With Claudio Pizarro not yet fit enough to play a full game, he started with Joe Cole as a makeshift centre-forward. It was far from a disastrous Chelsea performance but the implications for the start of their season could be much more dramatic.

Andrei Shevchenko, Claude Makelele, Paulo Ferreira, Salomon Kalou and Arjen Robben were the other absentees, as well as the long-term injured, Wayne Bridge and Michael Ballack. It was reflected in Mourinho's mood as he first refused even to take questions on the seriousness of his players' injuries, only brightening later to say he was not worried. "I'm ready for the fight and I'm happy with the team," he said.

At pitchside, temperatures crept past 35C and while the match never approached the intensity of last season's FA Cup final less than three months ago, it was not for lack of effort on the part of some individuals. Wayne Rooney discovered that it was not just the referee who can book him now, the linesman can have a say, too. Via his headset, Darren Cann advised the referee, Mark Halsey, of a kick at Tal Ben Haim from Rooney that earned the England striker a booking.

It was Rooney who looked among the sharpest on the pitch and Cristiano Ronaldo, too, but not before the latter mistakenly backheeled the ball mid-stepover and in doing so effectively tackled himself. United were blessed with pace in attack, especially with Patrice Evra promoted to a left-wing position where he excelled and was integral in the creation of the United goal for Ryan Giggs.

On 35 minutes, Evra's exchange with Ronaldo allowed him to cross to Giggs and United's 33-year-old captain struck the ball up into the roof of Petr Cech's goal. The Chelsea goalkeeper had made a brilliant save from Giggs in the 21st minute and Cech remains one of the very few whom Mourinho simply cannot afford to be without.

From his seat in the sunshine at Wembley, Steve McClaren will already have been worrying about the state of his England team's defence against Germany next week when Florent Malouda embarrassed the only fit first-choice centre-back the national-team manager has left. Chelsea's £13.5m signing did extremely well to out-muscle Rio Ferdinand as he ran on to a long ball from Ashley Cole and, with his last touch, steered the ball past Van der Sar. Just Mourinho's luck then that Malouda would later limp off with the injury he picked up in the act of scoring and later Glen Johnson was also forced to withdraw.

Pizarro gave Chelsea more presence in attack in the second half, but as a player who spent eight years in Germany, Mourinho might have expected him to be better at penalties. The Peruvian had his spot-kick saved by Van der Sar, as did Lampard and Shaun Wright-Phillips. When Rooney smashed in the third United penalty it was all over

Tevez will make his debut on Wednesday in one of two friendlies United play that day against Dunfermline Athletic and Glentoran in Belfast. Ferguson had clearly read the theories that his new Argentine is too similar to Rooney for the two to be compatible and was not of the same mind.

"I don't think they're identical at all, other than that they're both of a similar physique," he said. "Both are two-footed, both are quickish, both can beat their man. I don't think those similarities are a bad thing. When they get playing with each other, they'll hopefully get an understanding."

On the Premier League title race he was more cryptic. "Everyone in the country knows we're the two best sides, but Arsenal and Liverpool will play a bigger hand this season."

The United manager still claims that there is not much to be deduced from days like these but as a guide to the next month, the form favours the champions.

Chelsea (4-3-3) Cech; Johnson (Sidwell, 78), Carvalho, Ben Haim, A Cole (Diarra, 67); Essien, Mikel, Lampard; Wright-Phillips, J Cole (Sinclair, 82), Malouda (Pizarro, 51). Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Hilario (gk), Worley.

Manchester United (4-4-2): Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Silvestre (Nani, 68); Ronaldo, Carrick, O'Shea, Evra; Rooney, Giggs (Fletcher, 81). Substitutes not used: Kuszczak (gk), Pique, Bardsley, Martin, Eagles.

Referee: M Halsey (Lancashire).

Booked: Chelsea Ben Haim, Carvalho, Mikel; Manchester United Rooney.

Man of the match: Evra.

Stamford Bridge sick list

* John Terry

(knee, one month)

* Wayne Bridge

(hip, three months)

* Frank Lampard

(broken toe, still playing)

* Didier Drogba

(doubtful for opener)

* Andrei Shevchenko

(back, doubtful for opener)

* Florent Malouda (right)

(doubtful for opener)

* Glen Johnson

(muscle, doubtful)

* Michael Ballack

(ankle, two to three

weeks)

* Salomon Kalou

(muscle, doubtful)

* Arjen Robben

(knee, doubtful)

* Claude Makelele

(knee, should be fit for opener)

* Paulo Ferreira

(muscle, doubtful)