Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini has dismissed Jose Mourinho's claim that Chelsea no longer have a chance of winning the Premier League title.
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Speaking after Chelsea's shock 1-0 loss at Crystal Palace on Saturday, Mourinho said: "I don't think now we can win the league."
The Chelsea manager has insisted all season that the Blues are not favourites for the title, despite having led the table in recent weeks, until Liverpool climbed top with their 4-0 win over Tottenham on Sunday.
However, Pellegrini told British national newspapers: "I don't think important managers can give any importance to those mind games. And I don't know if you think managers who seem to play mind games are more intelligent, but I don't think so.
"I don't have a response because I don't know what Mourinho said. It is not my duty to analyse what Mourinho says, it is your duty.
"I repeat: I don't know the way he thinks. My way of thinking is that the four teams have the same options to win the title. It is very close, as all the other teams have 18 points more to win, with six games more.
"We have eight games more and we have to win those six points. We don't have six points more, we have had two games postponed so I think we all have the same chances."
Meanwhile, Palace defender Damien Delaney has thanked Mourinho for his words of encouragement that Tony Pulis' side will avoid relegation after their 2-1 loss at Chelsea in December.
Delaney said in the Daily Star: "He came into our changing room and told us: 'If you guys keep that spirit and work-rate, you're not going to go down.'
"Did that come back to bite him? Yes, for sure! But fair play to him. He came into our changing room again, congratulated us, popped his head in and said 'well done.' That was nice.
"It would've been easy for him to try and say something to take the heat off his own team but he's a good guy. I admire him.
"I hope Chelsea go on and do things between now and the end of the season but we put in a brilliant shift. If we haven't got spirit, we haven't got much. But that's what we're built on, it's what we do."