Gary Bowyer has spoken of his disappointment in players not taking their opportunities - following a 4-0 Carabao Cup defeat to Preston North End.
The Bantams boss made several changes to his starting line-up for the visit of the Sky Bet Championship outfit.
And he believes the players selected could have done more to seize their opportunity and force a way into his future plans.
Bowyer said: “It was a disappointing night against a very good team. They have assembled a very good squad which you could see.
“Having said that, I am very unhappy with the manner of the goals we conceded and the opportunities our players have missed.
“They are a well-coached side who have a lot of competition for places. Many of their players have put a marker down for their manager, like ours should have done.
“It was one of them games where we must now take the medicine we were served, and concentrate fully on Saturday, at home to Oldham.”
Despite a challenging evening, the City chief has expressed his satisfaction in seeing some members of his squad gaining much-needed game time.
Paudie O’Connor made his his first appearance for the Bantams since signing permanently from Leeds United in the summer and Bowyer was pleased to see him back on the field.
He added: “The most important thing was giving minutes to the players who needed them the most.
“That was Paudie O’Connor’s first 90 minutes since the end of last season. I was impressed with how he performed and he will benefit from it, massively.
“I asked the players to give me a selection problem for Saturday. One or two of them have taken their chances, but we were looking for more of them to do so.
“When they came on, Omari Patrick and Luca Colville showed a threat - going forward - for us, which has given me something to think about.”
Bowyer’s men are back on home soil this Saturday, facing Oldham Athletic in Sky Bet League Two (kick-off 3.00pm).