Benfica registered yet another drop in Barcelona's fortunes after beating the Catalan club 3-0 in the Champions League group stage on Wednesday.
It was Ronald Koeman's second consecutive loss in the competition by a margin of three goals, after losing to Bayern Munich on the same scoreline two weeks earlier.
This puts further pressure on Koeman, who has been heavily criticized & could potentially be sacked amid an equally poor start to the LaLiga season.
"It's a tough result, & it's not what we saw on the pitch," Koeman said.
"While we accepted early, we were good till 2-0. We had many chances to score & didn't take them. That's how you change the game.
"If they make three chances & we don't, it's a big difference between the sides."
Koeman insisted that the players were behind him as he bid to change his form, but said he did not know if the board felt the same way.
"I'm not going to argue about the level of my team. There's no point in comparing it with the Barcelona teams. It's as clear as water," the Dutchman said.
"I can only give you my opinion about my work at the club - I feel supported by my players and their attitude. The rest, the club, I'm not sure ... I can't say more, because I'm not me Know what the club thinks about this. It's not in my hands."
Barca captain Sergio Busquets also said that part of the blame lies with the players on the pitch.
"At the end of the day, getting rid of the coach is an easy thing, but we are all responsible. The truth is we are in a dire situation," Busquets said.
"We are only two games into the group stage. We need to focus on improving.
"We need to win our next two games against Dynamo Kiev and see how the other two progress. There is a long way to go and we need to try to stay positive."
Uruguay star Darwin Nez scored two goals for Benfica on the night, giving the Portuguese powerhouse victory in an electric night in Lisbon. Nez's first goal came just three minutes into the game when he crossed Barca's backline & cut to the left for a near-post finish.
Benfica's Lucas Verissimo then made a last-ditch block to deny Luuc de Jong from close range as Barcelona looked to get back into the game, but they were in full second.
Jorge Jesus' side continued to mount pressure after the break, with Rafa Silva doubling Benfica's lead in the 69th minute when he pounced on Joo Mario's opening shot.
Benfica continued the attack when Nez saw wordwork to a shot clip after hitting a through ball to Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Nunez converted a penalty in the 79th minute after Sergio Dest was booked for a handball inside the box.
Barcelona ended the night with 10 men after Eric Garcia was shown his second yellow card on the night.
Barca are at the bottom of Group E with no points in two games, six behind Bayern & four behind Benfica. Dynamo Kiev is in third place in one point.