Fulham manager Martin Jol was dejected after his side suffered a 1-0 defeat to Championship outfit Sheffield Wednesday in the Capital One Cup second round.
Although Gary Madine's 50th-minute penalty was all that separated the sides, it was no fluke win by Wednesday, who restricted their Premier League opponents to just one shot on target.
Jol, who opted not to talk to the written media post match, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Considering they made five changes and we only had one player rested, that was very disappointing and they deserved their win.
"We didn't trouble their goalkeeper enough. You could see we missed our creative department, with (Mladen) Petric injured, and with Dembele not there.
"That was the problem up front, so we couldn't play our football like we know we can."
Fulham did have the ball in the net in the 63rd minute, only for skipper Brede Hangeland to be ruled offside after heading home a Matthew Briggs cross.
Jol added: "Nobody's told me what it was disallowed for. It seems strange. We have to see it again and have another look."
For
Owls boss Dave Jones, the result was further proof Wednesday are a team on the rise again under his leadership.
"I was very pleased, I thought we were disciplined and we forced Fulham to play long, which they didn't want to do," said Jones.
"Everybody out there had to work really hard, the commitment was good and there was a lot of good play from us as we created good chances.
"I'm pleased with the overall performance of the team, and we deserved what was a hard-fought victory."
Despite the unbeaten run that last season saw them climb out of League One, Jones is adamant no-one is getting too big for their boots within the club.
Jones added: "There's a real feel-good factor around the place at the moment.
"But you can't take it for granted otherwise this game will kick you in the teeth.
"So we just have to keep doing what we're doing, and hopefully this will continue."
Jones singled out Madine for praise, the striker grabbing his first of the season after scoring 18 in 36 games during their promotion campaign last term.
"It looked like Gary was back to his best, but he just needs to be sharper," said Jones.
"He didn't have a pre-season as he struggled with a knee and a foot injury, and now he's playing catch up
"But he gave them (the Fulham defenders) a going over. He got his penalty, slotted it home well.
"Goalscorers like to score goals and that's the biggest injection of confidence they can give themselves."