Nottingham Forest returned from the capital empty-handed as they fell to a 2-0 opening day defeat to QPR.
In their first league game of the new term, the Reds were left to rue a host of missed chances after falling behind to a Lyndon Dykes penalty, conceded by Tobias Figueiredo.
And, unable to find the back of the net, Rangers rubbed salt in the wound by sealing the points in added time through Ilias Chair.
Forest correspondent Sarah Clapson looks at five talking points from the game at Loftus Road.
Losing streak
Whether taken in isolation, or within a wider picture of what happened just a few short weeks ago, the first two games of the campaign don’t paint a pretty picture.
A Carabao Cup exit and being beaten in their first Championship match. That’s far from the start Forest wanted, as they look to shake off that Stoke hangover.
Performances, too, have not been the best, although this weekend was slightly better.
Head coach Sabri Lamouchi needs a win. His players need a win. That would have been the case in any season.
They need to get some confidence back, and perhaps a bit of belief. Just something to put further distance between themselves and that City Ground collapse. Something to build on.
That penalty
It was a poor, poor challenge by Figueiredo on Dykes. Clumsy.
He allowed the Rangers man to get on the wrong side of him and made a ham-fisted attempt at trying to correct his error.
There could be no complaints about it being a spot-kick.
Prior to that, Forest had largely had a handle on QPR. The hosts had been brighter and sharper, but they still hadn’t really tested Brice Samba.
It was a costly mistake from Figueiredo. And at this level, you cannot afford slips like that.
Missed chances
Nevertheless, the visitors could quite easily have taken something from this game.
Lewis Grabban is usually so clinical in front of goal, but spurned a handful of the golden opportunities he normally gobbles up.
He is not, Lamouchi said afterwards, quite 100 percent.
And it looked as though he wasn’t the only one on that front. A few appeared a little under-cooked. A short pre-season in this strangest of years, and a quick turnaround, seems to have played havoc with fitness levels.
Added to that, a few have not had regular game time for a while. For Jack Colback, it has been more than a year. Luke Freeman started his first match since March. Lyle Taylor was making only his second appearance since the same month.
All three, like Grabban, are very good players and can prove solid additions. Getting up to speed - quickly - will be key.
Selection decisions
Picking the team is incredibly easy in hindsight. Lamouchi knows as much as anyone that if you win, you’re hailed as a genius for your decisions. If you lose, critics can say you got it wrong.
It was quite a call from the head coach to leave out Yuri Ribeiro from his matchday squad entirely and use Tyler Blackett at left-back.
Ribeiro was one of the most consistent players last term.
Blackett didn’t do a bad job in a position he has played in before, but the Reds could still really do with establishing a settled defence. That was something which served them well previously.
Having established a solid base early on in his tenure, Lamouchi needs to get his side back to that; stop shipping sloppy goals. Sticking with a back line can help.
Jordan Gabriel had done well on his full debut at Barnsley and kept his place on the opposite flank.
The manager explained it as a tactical decision, and Gabriel is a player with great promise. But with two more senior right-backs in the wings, it wouldn’t be too much of a surprise if Carl Jenkinson or Tendayi Darikwa come in next weekend.
As for how to get the best out of his attacking options, that is another significant challenge facing the Frenchman.
Under pressure
Lamouchi is well aware there is no margin for error this term. He knows he’s been given a second chance.
And if the Reds continue stuttering, in the same manner they did towards the end of last season, there’s little doubt he could be on thin ice.
Form has to change quickly, both for the manager’s sake and in the wider scheme of what should be a promotion push.
A big improvement is needed. Forest have to get better. They have to play better.
Saturday was just the first game in what will be a long campaign. The Reds lost their league opener a year ago, too.
On another day, they would have come back from Loftus Road with something to show for their efforts.
But very soon they need something tangible; some points on the board.
There shouldn’t be any cause for panic just yet. This was typical opening day fare.
It is viewed particularly harshly through the prism of those disastrous weeks in July.
The club stuck with Lamouchi in the summer and have backed him in the transfer market, as well as with a change of backroom staff. And they will want results to show for that.
There would be little point in making those calls, without allowing him a few games' grace, however.
Fans, too, need something to cling to; something to suggest that this team can progress and challenge at the top.
As always, the only thing which counts will be what happens on the pitch.
