Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick was left to rue what he deemed to be a foul in the build-up to West Brom’s opening goal as Boro were beaten 4-2 at The Hawthorns.

Carrick’s winless side, who reached the Championship play-offs last season, suffered their third defeat in four matches after going down to Carlos Corberan’s Baggies.

The hosts took control of the match with two goals in quick succession midway through the first half, but Carrick bemoaned referee Jeremy Simpson’s decision to not award a free-kick to Jonny Howson prior to Cedric Kipre opening the scoring.

“It’s a big moment,” Carrick said.

“It’s hard not to get too frustrated, but I thought it was a clear two-handed push. You’re going to suffer things which go against you over a season. I’m not going to sit here and say everything is fantastic because we haven’t won yet, but equally there’s more to it than that.”

Although Middlesbrough, who had Tommy Smith sent off just after half-time following a second booking, have begun the season slowly, Carrick remains encouraged with many aspects of what he has seen from his team, which is still finding its feet after the loss of top scorers Chuba Akpom and Cameron Archer over the course of the summer.

Carrick added: “I feel for the boys. There are two sides of it – there’s the result which you can’t hide from, but it’s what happens within that which leads to the result.

“We’ve conceded four shots on target, and four goals. One is a foul, one was a mistake and for a large part I thought there were a lot of good things. We have finished the game strong with 10 men. I was encouraged by things I’m seeing – it’s a strange feeling in many ways.

“You can’t hide from it, but it doesn’t knock my belief in the boys in the squad. We keep doing a lot of things we’re doing and the results will come.”

West Brom quickly backed up Kipre’s 22nd-minute opener with John Swift’s superb 27th-minute thunderbolt, but Boro replied a minute later through Emmanuel Latte Lath.

Albion struck quickly in the second period through Brandon Thomas-Asante before Smith was sent off and, although Boro responded again via Marcus Forss’ late penalty, Jeremy Sarmiento sealed the points in stoppage time for the hosts.

Despite making it two wins from two at home this season, Baggies boss Corberan still sees room for improvement in his side.

“It was hard for me, emotionally, to see that we were better than them at 2-0 and you go to 2-1. We need to control better some moments of the game, in some areas of the pitch, to stop conceding goals that we need to avoid,” he said.

“At 3-1, we were allowed to be more dominant in attack without hurting them, and the red card meant we had a numerical advantage. Sometimes when you have the ball so much, you lose concentration. We started to relax in defence.

“In some moments they found ways to create chances against us. This is something I want to correct, because I want a strong team in attack and a strong team in defence. The fact that we score goals doesn’t mean anything.”

Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray is still waiting for his attack to fire this season after they ground out a goalless draw at Coventry.

Already without long-term casualty Ross Stewart, the Black Cats were also shorn of the injured Patrick Roberts, with Mowbray continuing to mend and make do with 17-year-old Jobe Bellingham leading the line.

Mowbray is hoping he will be able to bring in a striker before the transfer window closes on Friday in order to add a cutting edge to a side that frequently dominates possession.

In terms of chances created, it was Coventry who shaded matters and it required several good saves from Sunderland goalkeeper Anthony Patterson to preserve a point for the visitors.

Mowbray said: “The game panned out a little bit differently to what I thought.

“I thought we would come here and dominate possession, like we did last year against them, and they were good first half with the ball.

“I was disappointed at half-time and we readjusted a few things and I thought we were better in the second half.

“We got into some good positions and just the final ball wasn’t quite there today, as we can say in most of the games this season.

“The first three games we averaged 68 per cent possession and we got in behind teams so many times, but we couldn’t find the pass to put the ball into the back of the net.

“It was a bit like that in the second half today and yet you could always feel Coventry’s threat.

“They obviously played two strikers and a 10, they’re a menace and I thought the concentration was good defensively.”

The best chance of the first half came Coventry’s way after 44 minutes when Ellis Simms went through, only for Patterson to save well with his legs.

Sunderland looked bright after the restart and forced Ben Wilson into action twice in a matter of moments as he parried Dan Neil’s effort before also saving Dennis Cirkin’s follow-up.

Kasey Palmer then tried to force the issue for the hosts with a good run into the area, but his tame effort was comfortably saved by Patterson.

The clearest chance for either team to win it came in the 79th minute when Coventry debutant Yasin Ayari played in fellow substitute Haji Wright, who was also denied by the impressive Patterson.

Coventry boss Mark Robins said: “Across the backline, I thought we were outstanding.

“When we needed to, we threw bodies in front of it – I think Milan (Van Ewijk) has had his best game, Jay Dasilva has been really good today, Kyle McFadzean was a joke throwing himself in front of things.

“Then on the flip side of it, we’ve played some really good football.

“We got through them, we got into wide areas, they sat deep and tried to play on the counter-attack against us – they had three players there to try and break out at any given moment, and that’s why they’re dangerous.

“They dropped bodies in, we tried to open them up and if we don’t get it right because there’s no space, it means that as soon as we turn it over, they’re on a counter.

“That put us on the back foot in terms of coming out and being really aggressive.”

Daniel Farke had no hesitation in playing scoring duo Wilfried Gnonto and Luis Sinisterra in Leeds’ 4-3 win at Ipswich.

The pair have been missing for a fortnight; Gnonto after submitting a transfer request as he tried to force a way out of the club and Sinisterra as his own future remained unresolved.

Farke sidelined the pair and was firm when discussing them in the week, particularly on the subject of Italy international Gnonto who he said had apologised after refusing to play.

The duo came back into the side as Farke secured his maiden league win as Leeds boss, with first goals for Georginio Rutter and Joel Piroe on his debut ending Ipswich’s perfect record.

“I wasn’t too concerned about these two decisions (to pick Gnonto and Sinisterra) to be honest because I’ve watched them during the training week and they looked really, really sharp and disciplined and I had a really good feeling with this decision,” Farke said.

“I was in general pleased with our offensive firepower, especially because we played a side who just conceded one goal over their first four games.

“It’s a difficult place to come here, they played full of confidence and excited the home fans in the stadium and for us then to dig in and to grind out a result and to score four times is really, really good and especially the offensive play on the scoresheet.

“I am pleased for my offensive players that they showed real quality today and also clinical finishes and it’s good for the mood, good for the confidence, good for the table, good for them also to be off the mark in terms of goals and I am happy with this.”

Ipswich went ahead through a Joe Rodon own goal and pulled further strikes back through Nathan Broadhead in first-half injury time and Conor Chaplin late in the second.

It was not enough to extend Town’s unbeaten run to 22 games, though, and boss Kieran McKenna said. “I thought there was a lot more good than bad (from us), there are so many positives to take in the game.

“I thought we were the better and more dominant team in so many aspects of the game on and off the ball and there’s lots to be pleased about.

“On another day the game could have went differently.

“There was of course things for us to improve, big lessons to learn. Of course disappointment with the goals that we conceded in the first half.

“But that’s part of the adjustment about playing against a much better team, with much higher players – we’ll improve and we’ll learn from those mistakes and continue working to get better.

“I think overall there are so many things to give us confidence.

“It was a really intense start to the game … we were competing and got the goal, we were in a great position to go on and take control of the game and if we had been able to do that for a little while we would have been able to build up a lot more momentum.

“I had a feeling that today would be a high scoring game.”

Kayden Jackson’s darting run led to the first goal after seven minutes when his cross took a big deflection off Rodon to beat goalkeeper Illan Meslier.

Leeds equalised three minutes later through Rutter’s individual brilliance and the visitors took the lead in the 14th minute through Gnonto.

They went further ahead with 19 minutes on the clock when Town goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky could only parry a shot from Sinisterra to Piroe who gobbled up the rebound.

Ipswich got their second through Broadhead but Sinisterra netted the fourth before Chaplin’s goal.

Wolves head coach Gary O’Neil admitted there were large spells in Saturday’s 1-0 Premier League victory over Everton which he did not like but he was more than happy with the outcome.

The visitors scored with their only shot in target in the 87th minute when substitute Sasa Kalajdzic glanced home a header just two minutes after coming on.

By contrast Everton had 15 shots, seven on target, seven corners to Wolves’ none, but struggled to end a long-standing problem of scoring.

“I thought it was a decently-balanced performance with large spells I didn’t like,” said O’Neil, who only took over on the eve of the season after the departure of Julen Lopetegui.

“But I have to remind myself that we have not been here nine months, we have been here 15 days and there will be spells where it doesn’t quite look like what you want.”

Kalajdzic’s impact was all the more impressive as it was only the Austrian’s third appearance in a year for the club after rupturing an ACL on his debut last season.

“He has worked very hard since I’ve been here and he’s still got a long journey getting back to full fitness,” added O’Neil.

“With us arriving in good areas, I felt we could put some good crosses into the penalty area and I thought Sasa could be that guy.

“It was a really smart finish as he is facing the wrong way and it’s easy to get disorientated.”

Kalajdzic goal not only secured Wolves’ first points of the season but was their first on the road in 10 attempts and resulted in them winning three-successive league games at Goodison Park for the first time.

Both teams had begun the afternoon pointless in 18th and 19th in the table but O’Neil tried to play down the significance of the victory.

“I think winning Premier League games is big, every single one, especially on the road and especially the first one with a new group,” said the manager.

“It’s a tough place to come but it doesn’t feel big because us and Everton were both on zero, it just felt like a win the boys deserved after the work they have put in over the last 15 days.”

With Dominic Calvert-Lewin out with a cheekbone injury and deputy Neal Maupay misfiring, Everton boss Sean Dyche opted to give loan signing Arnaut Danjuma his first start up front but he also lacked the sharpness needed to end a goalless run which is already at 270 minutes this season.

Everton are struggling to find further new signings before the close of the window – their interest in Southampton striker Che Adams has yet to materialise into a concrete offer – but Dyche insisted they would continue to pursue every avenue.

“If we had loads and loads of money, we would change all sorts because things have not been right for a long time,” he said.

“I am trying to remodel a group with the players that are here and if we can add to that, we will be doing.

“All these names that get bandied, there are some that are real and some that are not.”

Paul Simpson was left “raging” after his Carlisle side’s 1-0 defeat to Port Vale.

James Wilson’s penalty was all that separated the two sides, leaving Simpson’s side are still looking for their first league victory since promotion.

The manager was angered by the mix-up between Jokull Andresson and Jon Mellish which eventually led to his keeper conceding the match-winning penalty for a foul on Ethan Chislett.

“I’m absolutely raging to be honest,” said Simpson.

“We’ve gifted three points to Port Vale. Jokull just shouldn’t have been in that position.

“It’s been a frustrating day all round. We managed to get ourselves into some good positions in and around their box, but we’ve then not tested their keeper enough.

“Perhaps we’ve not been brave enough in certain situations. It’s something we’ll have to work on of course, but it’s difficult sometimes.

“I knew it wouldn’t be easy getting used to the higher level, and that’s how it’s proving.

“I can’t fault any of the players in terms of effort and endeavour, we’ve come to a tough place today and given it a real go. We’ve gone toe-to-toe with a really strong Port Vale team – it’s just not been our day unfortunately.”

Both sides created chances in an entertaining first half at Vale Park.

Wilson went closest for the hosts while Callum Guy threatened more than once for Carlisle.

Vale struck shortly after the restart when Andresson tugged back Chislett in the box, leaving Wilson to coolly slot home.

Carlisle pressed for a leveller late on, but Vale hung on and stretched their unbeaten run to four games to the delight of manager Andy Crosby.

“It was a really hard-earned victory for us,” said Crosby.

“We tried our hardest to control the game and that did prove difficult at times.

“What is disappointing is that we didn’t necessarily capitalise on the periods when we were dominant.

“When you allow a game like that to head into the latter stages and you’re still only 1-0 up, then you know you’re only an individual error away from potentially throwing away two points.

“We should really have finished the game off sooner but we ran around a lot, showed a real togetherness, and in the end that has got us the result.

“We need to find more of that ruthless nature that you need to be really successful at this level.

“You have to take the game away from teams earlier than we have done today, but it’s still a big three points and it keeps the positive momentum going.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers admitted it was clear they need to bring in new signings to improve the team after a goalless home draw with St Johnstone.

The hosts failed to score in consecutive domestic games for the first time since May 2018, when they did so soon after winning the title for the second time under Rodgers.

Celtic delivered another flat display following their 1-0 defeat in the Viaplay Cup at Kilmarnock to allow Rangers to cut their deficit on the cinch Premiership champions to a point before next Sunday’s Ibrox derby.

Matt O’Riley forced a hat-trick of impressive stops from Dimitar Mitov, but Celtic largely struggled to test the Saints goalkeeper and Joe Hart pulled off excellent second-half saves from debutant Dara Costelloe and substitute Stevie May.

Rodgers pinpointed the performance of summer signing Yang Hyun-jun as one of the positives along the return of Alistair Johnston, but he admitted they deserved to be booed off.

Swedish centre-back Gustaf Lagerbielke was the only other summer arrival to start and Rodgers is looking for new players ahead of Friday’s deadline that can hit the ground running after the club signed largely inexperienced players since his arrival.

When asked if he expected incomings, Rodgers said: “Hopefully. I think it’s clear… I have said before we have improved the squad with some of the players we have brought in, but we have lost starters. So we need to improve the team.

“And it’s always a challenge coming off the back of a season where you have won the treble.

“You have got to go again the following season where there is a greater expectation on you and more pressure.

“The fans will expect and rightly so. They were disappointed after the game and I am fully aware that if you draw at home to St Johnstone you deserve that bit of stick.

“There’s no numbers. I spoke with the club when I first came in and assessed the squad and we just need to improve that quality.

“It’s clear, if you see the team. When you look back at my first time here; the team was dynamic, it was fast, it was quick, got through the lines very quickly, created chances, scored goals.

“This is what we will eventually get to here, but we are missing certain profiles. Hopefully we can bring that into the squad and obviously be a lot cleaner and quicker in our play.”

The performance will further concern fans ahead of the meeting with Rangers, but Rodgers said: “Listen, when you are playing Rangers, whether you are home and away, it’s the easiest game ever as a manager in terms of motivation and commitment because it’s an obligation. You don’t have a choice in any game, and in particular in that game.

“It’s a disappointment, it feels like a loss when you don’t win, but the point might prove important for us at the end of the season.

“But the expectation when you are playing here is to win and we need to do more to do that.”

Saints moved off the bottom of the table with their first point after a difficult summer for Steven MacLean, which saw the new manager round off a disastrous Viaplay Cup campaign with a 4-0 home defeat by Stirling.

MacLean handed debuts to three new loan signings – Costelloe, Jay Turner-Cooke and Luke Robinson – and fielded eight summer arrivals in total, with skipper Liam Gordon starting on the bench.

His side were compact and organised, though, and the former Saints striker was delighted with the performance.

“All the new players we had, the way they worked, the togetherness of them, the work ethic, they did what we wanted them to do to the letter,” he said.

“You never know quite what you’re going to get. You see them doing good things in training but until you pitch them in, you never know.

“I’m delighted for them as well. They’re young, hungry players who want to kick on and play at a higher level. Hopefully we can help them to do that.”

Liam Manning says he will not be getting carried away after Oxford moved top of Sky Bet League One after beating Charlton 2-1.

It was a fourth straight win for the U’s and owed much to two-goal Tyler Goodrham, who opened the scoring in the 10th minute and struck the winner five minutes from time.

Charlton had bossed the start of the second half and equalised through Alfie May’s second goal of the season in the 63rd minute, but the Addicks have now lost five on the spin in all competitions.

Manning said: “I won’t be looking at the league table. For me it’s just about keeping on chipping away and picking up points.

“We will just reflect on what we did well, what we can do better and it’s all about building on this for the next game.

“It was a cliched game of two halves. We controlled the first half, with the ball and out of possession.

“We got in some really good areas and had some really good chances and I thought we could have been more clinical.

“I would have liked us, while we had the dominance there, to have made the most of it and try to put the game to bed.

“But you’re never going to dominate a game for 90 minutes and in the second half they came out a little more aggressive, on the front foot and pressed a bit more.

“They got the goal, but despite their possession they didn’t create too many chances and James Beadle didn’t have too many saves to make.

“What we showed was a good response and a willingness to bounce back.

“Yes, the performance we can dissect, but ultimately we did enough to get three points.”

Goodrham, 20, also scored in Oxford’s previous game, a 3-1 win at Barnsley.

“Tyler’s fearless, his energy and bravery are tremendous,” Manning said. “It’s now about the consistency, which he’s starting to show, and we’ll be pushing him to produce.

“Knowing him as well as I do now, he’ll keep demanding of himself.

“He’s in a terrific spot where he’s consistently playing games and is on form at the minute.

“It’s an exciting time for young players here, and we’ve shown we’re not afraid to throw in young players.”

Charlton manager Dean Holden admitted: “It’s a tough one to take.

“We started excellently and had the best chance of the game in the first few minutes for Alfie May.

“Then we conceded poorly on 10 minutes and started getting pulled around a lot and were ragged and that wasn’t acceptable.

“That’s why I made changes and changed the shape and we were much better in the second half.

“I was really pleased with the second half – we came out of the traps quickly and took the game to them and deservedly equalised.

“But we were caught by a sucker punch, trying to find the winner, they break from their box and seven seconds later we’re 2-1 down.

“My players gave everything they’ve got. We deserved more from the game but didn’t get it. It’s a similar story every week.

“We have to get back to work and turn results around. It’s about regrouping quickly.

“For me it’s about staying positive…the first half wasn’t acceptable but the second half is something to build on.

“I’m absolutely certain we’ll turn this around.”

Shrewsbury manager Matt Taylor highlighted Daniel Udoh as instrumental after his goal secured a 1-0 victory at Fleetwood.

The visitors fought hard to defeat nine-man Fleetwood, who fell to their fifth consecutive defeat in all competitions.

The Cod Army created more chances but they could not find the back of the net.

In contrast, Shrewsbury scored with their first shot providing the only goal of the game, after Udoh capitalised on a mistake from Scott Robertson.

“I think we did everything that to a man you would expect away from home,” Taylor said.

“I think it’s so vitally important that we focus on Daniel Udoh – for him to be able to score and celebrate in front of our fans having seen how hard he’s worked is pleasing.

“He’s got an infectious character and I’m really happy. The players showed courage and determination to apply themselves and win that game of football.

“He was composed, I think when you get into those positions as a striker and you see the opportunity you’ve got one versus one and to have the composure is great.

“He is and he will be instrumental for the football club as we move forward.”

Despite the victory, Taylor still wants to see more from his side.

“There are areas which I hope we’re better next week but they fought and got the result. That’s two away performances and three points are huge for us today,” Taylor continued.

“Now there’s another extremely difficult trip away at Carlisle. I want the players to understand that their hard work, desire and determination have got us the result today.”

Fleetwood goalkeeper Jay Lynch was shown a red card for bringing down Ryan Bowman before half-time, while Josh Earl was dismissed in stoppage time.

Scott Brown remained positive and insisted his side were the better team.

“You lose a sloppy goal and then straight afterwards and Lynch has just got to let him go past,” he said.

“We can’t afford to go down to 10 men and then nine men later in the game as well, which is something we never want to see,” he said.

“Our performance levels were very good but the problem is we couldn’t score a goal.

“Even when we went down to 10 men we were the better team. Throughout the whole game, we were the better team.

“But you can’t make mistakes and that isn’t just one person, because mentally that’s when it becomes a hard thing to get out of and it turns into a losing streak.

“We have to understand where we are in the table is nowhere near good enough.

“The way we play, the performance levels are good, but there is a blatant difference between the performance levels and the score.

“Every team would much rather the score was in your favour.”

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson hailed Joachim Andersen’s “colossus” performance after the Dane’s late equaliser secured a 1-1 draw against Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Kevin Schade’s stunning opener was cancelled out by Andersen in the 76th minute as both Brentford and Palace shared the spoils for a fifth consecutive time in the Premier League.

Hodgson lauded the centre-back’s overall performance which nullified the threat of Brentford duo Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo, who both fired blanks for the first time this season.

“I thought Joachim Andersen was the outstanding player today in our team and maybe the outstanding player on the field,” Hodgson said.

“I thought he was a colossus today, he won every header in both ends of the field and I thought he won every challenge he went into, he was a leader figure and he drove the team forward.

“He wasn’t afraid to come more than midway into the opponent’s half as we saw and he was playing balls and spraying it around from about 25 yards from goal and that was a great responsibility that he took there.

“I think it was very fitting that he got the goal even though it wasn’t a classic.”

For the first time this season Brentford appeared lost without focal point Ivan Toney, who is suspended, as they struggled to look threatening in the final third.

Frank highlighted his frustration at his side’s attacking performance and credited Hodgson’s Palace for their defensive efforts.

“No ( I wasn’t happy with the amount of Brentford chances) but I am not surprised,” Frank added.

“For whatever reason and I can’t figure it out, the two teams (Brentford and Palace) cancel each other out more or less in these games.

“In five games we’ve played them the amount of chances the two sides have created are very limited and I would have loved to have taken more.

“I think in the half opening transitions we lacked the final pass action to create more and we should’ve won 1-0 which is so frustrating.”

Schade’s 18th-minute goal was his first for Brentford since his switch in January and Frank talked up the winger’s qualities.

“I am so pleased for him, it’s so important for the confidence and what a goal it was,” Frank said.

“I loved his initiative to run at the opponent where he got all the way into the box and was composed before a fantastic finish so hopefully he can do more of those nice goals.”

Lincoln boss Mark Kennedy was cautious about looking at the Sky Bet League One table after his side cruised to a 3-0 victory over 10-man Blackpool.

The win moved the Imps up to fourth and extended their unbeaten run to four.

“Where we are in the league at the moment is not important,” Kennedy said. “We spoke to the group after the game and told them to not get carried away and stay grounded.

“We don’t want to be fooling ourselves. We’re not a top-four team.”

The Imps scored twice from the penalty spot and saw another strike deflected home, and Kennedy said: “With the goals, we had three big chances and took them.

“Blackpool are a really good side with a good coaching group, so that is a big win for us in a big test.

“I thought we were really good in and out of possession. We looked structured and hard to break down. We controlled the ball. I thought we did that very well today.

“Before we went to Shrewsbury, a couple of our players were practicing penalties. I told Danny Mandroui that he was on penalties today, but we have three or four players who are really capable.

“I’m a big believer of driving at defenders, so it was nice to see Ethan Erhahon drive forward and pulling the trigger. I’d like to see him do that more often.”

Blackpool boss Neil Critchley was honest about his side’s performance.

“Horrible is the word that sums it up,” he said. “The initial start was good, we had two good chances before the first goal after seven minutes. That was a mistake from us.

“It was stupid of us to give away the penalty. We responded well, I thought. We still had chances to equalise before the second.

“Lincoln got a little bit of luck with the second goal. We didn’t get the press right and he shoots from outside the area. It takes a deflection and at half-time I’m scratching my head as to why we were 2-0 down.

“We changed our formation and players at half-time and we were threatening to get back into the game.”

Blackpool were down to 10 men with 17 minutes to play after Oliver Norburn brought down Ben House prior to Lincoln’s third, and Critchley believed it was the right decision.

“We didn’t defend well enough on the halfway line,” Critchley continued.

“The third goal and the sending-off kills the game. It looked horrible, it feels horrible, but it’s our first defeat of the season so I have to put it into perspective.”

John Mousinho slammed the decision to send off Portsmouth’s Joe Rafferty and Stevenage’s Jake Forster-Caskey after a feisty 0-0 draw at the Lamex Stadium.

The two players were shown red by referee Simon Mather when a 50-50 challenge seemed to spark a skirmish on the floor during the second half of the League One clash.

Jordan Roberts came closest to scoring when the Boro forward hit the post from outside the box late in the first period.

“I think it was bizarre,” said Mousinho.

“We have just watched it back there, there is nothing in it.

“Rafferty and the lad on the floor have a little coming together, the referee does not deal with it and decides to send both players off.

“I just thought, from what I could see, the Stevenage player did not do anything to Rafferty or vice versa.

“Honestly, I don’t know, I think both players were really shocked.

“I just spoke to Rafferty there, he said there was nothing in it, so a bit of a strange one.

“It was a tough game to assess I think, it was another bizarre afternoon of football ruined by things that happened off the pitch.

“We are disappointed to come away with another draw, this is a really tough place to come, Stevenage are very well organised and good at what they do.

“We really opened them up towards the end, it was a very strange last half-hour because of the sendings-off.”

However, Boro boss Steve Evans insists the sending-off swung the match in Pompey’s favour.

“That changed the momentum a little because we were so far on top at that stage,” said Evans.

“That probably helped the Pompey lads a little bit more than us.

“I 100 per cent did not see it, if I saw it and my player was out of order then I would say it.

“I think they are under huge pressure aren’t they, we are under our own pressure.

“This is Portsmouth Football Club, look at the support they bring and the press coverage they demand because they are such a great club.

“I think John is a good young manager but he will learn along the way, won’t he?

“We will take the point; we will regroup, and we will go again.

“I don’t think there was a lot to split the teams at the end if you take the whole 90 minutes in.

“I think everyone will go home and say they will take the point, a hard-earned point.

“I think if you listen to every pundit and press report coming into the game, you would have thought it was lambs to the slaughter today, but little lambs bite sometimes.”

Bolton boss Ian Evatt felt his side should have been returning from Burton with a three-point haul rather than just one despite their slow start to the match and falling a goal behind.

Wanderers, looking to bounce back from last weekend’s 4-0 home mauling by Wigan, trailed to Mark Helm’s goal just after the break but drew level before the hour through Dion Charles.

However, Bolton could not go on to find a winner – and a first-ever victory at the home of the Brewers – as the match finished 1-1, much to Evatt’s frustration.

“It’s a game we should have won,” he said.

“First half we didn’t start great and for the first 20 minutes they put us under pressure, and we didn’t make the right decisions, which is understandable after last week, which really rocked us.”

Helm caught Bolton cold with Albion’s goal less than a minute into the second half which also irked the Bolton boss.

“We didn’t start the second half well either, making a critical error in the first minute,” Evatt said.

“To be fair, after that we rallied and took over the game, but we have missed some critical chances that should have put the game to bed.

“I think we can do better. We know we can do better. It would have been easy going behind again to feel sorry for ourselves and the only real frustration is that we should have gone on to win.”

Burton boss Dino Maamria was pleased with his team’s performance, but the former striker was also frustrated by their failure to kill off the game when Albion were on top.

“The performance is there to see. An excellent performance. I might have to put my boots on because we do everything apart from that last seven or eight yards,” he said.

Bobby Kamwa, making his first league start of the season, was guilty of an early miss having rounded Bolton keeper Nathan Baxter and hitting the post, a chance that would have capped a dominant opening to the game for Albion.

“A game like today should have been done and dusted in the first half but we just lack that quality in those final yards to score goals but everything else was excellent,” Maamria said.

“We played in their half and pressed them really well but couldn’t get the goal we deserved.”

He added: “Second half we got the goal and needed to kick on but the disappointment is that we conceded from a second ball from a long ball and it’s preventable.

“Is it a fair result?. I think if we had the killer instinct in those final 10 yards, we would have won the game.

“Their keeper denied Deji (Oshilaja) with his trailing leg at point-blank range and any other day that goes in, and we win the game. It wasn’t meant to be.”

Wigan boss Shaun Maloney was reluctant to criticise his team or the match officials after a 2-0 defeat to Barnsley with 10 men.

The visitors started brightly and took advantage of Charlie Hughes’ 21st-minute red card, with Devante Cole firing his side in front five minutes later.

Wigan showed plenty of heart in the second half but Barnsley substitute John McAtee made the game safe in added time.

Maloney said of the red card: “It’s a difficult decision. I’ve seen one angle of it and I can’t decide whether he’s got the ball or the player, so it looked a little bit 50-50.

“I don’t want to complain too much about decisions, sometimes they go for you and this instance it’s gone against us. It had a big impact in terms of how the game went, but that’s football and sometimes these things go against you.

“The flow of the game changed immediately after the red card. I’m not overly positive generally after defeats, but for half an hour or so in the second half we had to play under big pressure.

“I let them know that I didn’t care if there was a mistake, we had to play under pressure to get back into it and for 30 minutes I think we did that.

“I can’t be critical of the second goal, we went all out to try and get a goal and physically the team was spent. The last five or six minutes were open and I can’t be critical.

“It’s a sore one and you don’t like to lose, but we’ll get back to work on Monday.”

Barnsley manager Neill Collins admitted his “relief” as his side got back to winning ways.

The Tykes had not tasted victory since dismantling Port Vale 7-0 on the opening day of the season and they faced a tough task at the DW Stadium – against a side who would have started the day top were it not for an eight-point deduction for financial reasons.

Collins said: “It’s always a relief to win when you’re coming on the back of a couple of defeats.

“The first day was just an excellent day all round, to get the three points was important but to win the way we did meant it was made a bit more of a deal than it was.

“I thought the cup game afterwards (against Tranmere) was positive from the perspective that we had a really young team and they played really well.

“Then at Bristol (Rovers) we got a point without playing great, before two home games against two really tough teams (Peterborough and Oxford).

“People ask questions after defeats but we knew the reasons why they happened and how we needed to improve.

“To come here and get a result considering where we’re at is really pleasing.”