James Milner bemoaned the early goal Liverpool conceded against West Ham United on Saturday, as Slaven Bilić's side took a deserved 3-0 victory at Anfield.
It took less than three minutes before the Reds, who had kept three successive clean sheets leading into the clash, found themselves behind - with Manuel Lanzini turning in from inside the six-yard box at the Kop end.
Liverpool struggled to break down a compact Hammers side, as captain Mark Noble made it two after an avoidable error from Dejan Lovren in the 29th minute.
Brendan Rodgers' side gave themselves a mountain to climb after Philippe Coutinho was sent off in the early stages of the second half.
The introduction of debutant Danny Ings for the home side added some much-needed movement and directness, but it wasn't enough for Liverpool to pull themselves back into the encounter.
Though Noble saw red with just a few minutes remaining, the Londoners found a third goal on the counter as Diafra Sakho put the game beyond doubt in stoppage-time.
Reds vice-captain disappointed with manner of first defeat
Milner, who took the armband with Jordan Henderson still absent through an ankle injury, admitted that it was a "disappointing end" to the first few games of the campaign.
The Reds, who have a two week international break before their next match, a trip to Manchester United, had previously put in three promising performances, grinding out consecutive 1-0 victories before an enthralling display away at Arsenal saw them come away with a hard-fought point.
29-year-old Milner insisted he and his team-mates found it "tough" to break their opponents down, because West Ham packed "a lot of bodies behind the ball."
Bilić's side produced a similarly effective performance away at Arsenal in the first round of fixtures, soaking up an abundance of pressure and winning 2-0.
The midfielder hailed the Hammers' organisation and said they have "a lot of speed and ability on the break" as they notched a first win on L4 since 1963.
He said that once the visitors got their first goal inside the early stages, "it gave them a boost" and they had "something to hang on to" as they left Liverpool frustrated and inflicted their first defeat of the season on the Merseysiders.