Diego Simeone says Atletico Madrid must have "peace of mind" despite their poor Champions League campaign to date following a 2-0 defeat to Club Brugge.
Kamal Soweh and Ferran Jutgla were on target as the surprise Group B leaders made it three wins out of three and left Atleti bottom with three games to play.
Fellow rivals Bayer Leverkusen and Porto also sit on three points alongside the LaLiga club, with Brugge holding a six-point advantage at the summit.
Simeone took the positives out of the loss to the Belgian champions at Jan Breydel Stadium, where Antoine Griezmann missed a penalty.
"It was a game well played," the Atleti head coach told Movistar. "I think we controlled the game we wanted to play. I'm left with a lot of good things.
"There are a lot of Champions League games left to play. You have to have peace of mind, you don't have to get anxious. Everything is open."
The Argentine was left to rue his side's profligacy, but praised Brugge goalkeeper Simon Mignolet.
"We had two or three important chances to score, and a lack of forcefulness means Brugge went into half-time with an advantage," he added.
"But from then on, their key figure was their goalkeeper, without a doubt. We'll have to see if there is a lack of forcefulness to our performance.
"We do not need to lower our arms, lower our guard. There are good things, and there are things that clearly need to be corrected."
Brentford 3-1 Southampton: Bees begin life after Toney with comfortable win
Brentford began life without Ivan Toney with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Southampton.
Bryan Mbeumo’s brace and a Yoane Wissa goal proved to be the difference between the two sides and condemned the Saints to their third straight loss since promotion back to the Premier League.
With departed striker Toney watching in the stands after his move to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, the hosts proved too strong for Russell Martin’s men. They created the superior chances and capitalised on an error-strewn performance from Southampton’s backline.
Mbeumo opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time before doubling the lead halfway through the second period and Wissa then got on the scoresheet moments later to continue Brentford’s strong start to the campaign. Yukinari Sugawara bagged a consolation in injury time for the Saints.
Brentford sit in fifth place ahead of the first international break, while Southampton are second-bottom of the league table with zero points.
Data debrief: Wissa continues to prove effective at home
Wissa now has five goals and two assists in his last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford have recorded consecutive home league wins for the first time since last November, and the first time in their opening home games since August 2018.
Brentford 3-1 Southampton: Bees begin life without Toney with comfortable win
Brentford began life without Ivan Toney with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Southampton.
Bryan Mbeumo’s brace and a Yoane Wissa goal proved to be the difference between the two sides and condemned the Saints to their third straight loss since promotion back to the Premier League.
With departed striker Toney watching in the stands after his move to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, the hosts proved too strong for Russell Martin’s men. They created the superior chances and capitalised on an error-strewn performance from Southampton’s backline.
Mbeumo opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time before doubling the lead halfway through the second period and Wissa then got on the scoresheet moments later to continue Brentford’s strong start to the campaign. Yukinari Sugawara bagged a consolation in injury time for the Saints.
Brentford sit in fifth place ahead of the first international break, while Southampton are second-bottom of the league table with zero points.
Data debrief: Wissa continues to prove effective at home
Wissa now has five goals and two assists in his last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford have recorded consecutive home league wins for the first time since last November, and the first time in their opening home games since August 2018.
Simeone defends Atletico during tense press conference
Diego Simeone insisted Atletico Madrid are merely focused on "game by game" during a tense press conference, following his side's mixed start to the LaLiga season.
Los Rojiblancos' head coach, who was speaking ahead of their trip to face Athletic Bilbao, offered short, vague answers to only a handful of questions as he addressed reporters for just four-and-a-half minutes.
Simeone has come under scrutiny after Atletico drew two of their opening three matches, with a drab goalless stalemate against promoted Espanyol already leaving them four points adrift of leaders Barcelona.
During the latter, the Argentine substituted Julian Alvarez and Samuel Lino at half-time, while he replaced striker Alexander Sorloth for defender Reinildo later on with his side still seeking the breakthrough that never arrived.
Atleti enjoyed a strong transfer window with the signings of Alvarez, Sorloth, Conor Gallagher and Robin Le Normand, but have struggled for consistency thus far.
When asked about the high expectations surrounding his squad and their aims for this season, Simeone told reporters: "Game by game. Since I arrived here 12 years ago, we try to compete in all competitions as best as we can."
On facing reigning Copa del Rey winners Bilbao, who defeated his side 3-0 in the semi-finals of last season's competition, he added: "Every time we play in Bilbao, we know how difficult it is.
"They are a strong rival at home, with their fans behind them. They are enjoying their best years and are the cup winners.
"We predict a difficult match and that we have to take it to where we want it to be."
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