Fulham manager Martin Jol gave the Cottagers a mark of only "six and a half" out of 10, for the Barclays Premier League opener draw against Aston Villa, which was also his first Premier League game in charge.
He said: "We had three good chances but, for a home match, I would like to have more control, more initiative and we have to score at first.
"So, 0-0 at home, you can't say that is a very good result."
He added: "The first half, I thought they kept the ball better than we did and we looked nervous.
"We didn't keep the ball well enough for a home game.
"But the second half, especially the first 20 minutes, was good.
"If you're in their half, you have to keep the ball, and that is what I thought we did better in the second half."
Bobby Zamora and Andrew Johnson were both thwarted by Given after the break but it was a first-half miss from debutant John Arne Riise that was arguably most costly.
Jol defended the summer signing, saying: "If he had passed it into the net, it would've maybe been a save."
Fulham did manage to stop Darren Bent getting into the game at all, something that particularly pleased former Tottenham boss Jol.
"I probably know him better than most people because I had him at Spurs," he said.
"He's always dangerous for 90, 95 minutes."
Jol was also delighted to be back in the Premier League after almost four years away.
"It was a great feeling," he said.
"If you look at the figures, it's totally different from other countries, financially, player-wise."
And the Dutchman confirmed he would continue to use the limited finances at his disposal to recruit players before the transfer window closed.
He said: "Hopefully, we can do something in the next few weeks."