Scott Parker was frustrated by the goals that his Fulham side conceded in the 4-3 loss to Leeds United on Saturday afternoon.
An action-packed contest with seven goals scored, Fulham came up just short in their attempts to salvage a point away at Elland Road, after giving themselves a mountain to climb early in the second half.
Despite the 4-3 result, the Head Coach was heartened by the fighting spirit shown by his squad to almost snatch a draw from the jaws of defeat.
“Overall I am very frustrated,” Parker stated. “You can’t expect to score four or five goals to get something out of a game.
“We let ourselves get in that situation today.
“But there are positives from today. We showed some real quality in possession at times. We showed a real impetus and caused Leeds a lot of problems.
“On the flip side we gave away easy goals today and left ourselves a mountain to climb.
“It was an entertaining game and I think we were largely part of that. My team showed massive character.
“At 4-1 I think the floodgates could have opened. Maybe 18 months ago that would have been the case.
“The team kept on believing and never quit. But we left ourselves with a little bit too much to do.
“We need to improve.
“You cannot give goals up as easily as we have given them up today. That is vitally important for us to improve on.
“For me at times it's not about training, it’s about a mindset when it comes to defending. A bulb that goes off in your head when at certain moments in football matches there are critical moments.
“You have to be on high alert because in the Premier League at any given moment when you are nice and calm in possession the game can change.
“Of course there are individual mistakes and I understand, but the biggest issue for me is at certain moments you need to show another side. That comes from deep in the belly, you need to have a sense about you.
“Sometimes we are too nice.
“Within a split second the ball can be in the back of the net.”
Alphonse Areola made his league debut in the Fulham net following a clean sheet midweek versus Ipswich Town.
The Head Coach felt the side and changes he made were the perfect complement to counteract a very unique Leeds United team.
“I made those changes because I felt I named the best team to win the football match,” he said. “Obviously Alphonse gave us a good presence today.
“This was a unique team we played against today. A man-for-man team that presses you all over the pitch.
“We needed ball carriers. We needed people who could break away all over the pitch. That is why I named the team we fielded today.
“But listen, the players who did not play today are vital and will play a vital part this year.
“As I showed last year I will make changes for matches that give us the best chance of winning.”
Despite another setback in Fulham’s return to the Premier League, Parker has complete faith his side will keep their heads held high.
“There is massive hope,” Parker insisted. “There is always hope.
“This team will fight all year. We will do everything in our power to try and make this year successful.
“We all realise the challenges. We are in the best league in the world.
“We won’t let these defeats cripple us. We will come back fighting again. We are going to have to learn quickly.
“We are going to have to try new things. We have to learn quickly what this league is about.
“We were down 4-1 against a team who had the Champions on the run last week. We battled back.
“I thought for large parts we were dominating. But we need to know we can’t be weak in the defensive half like we were today.
“I have an unbelievable group here. A group that want to learn and improve, and we will.
“I have no doubt we will come out of this stronger and I have no doubt we will improve.”