Graham Alexander took his share of the blame in his first away with the Bantams, as City fell 4-2 to Notts County at Meadow Lane.
The former Scotland international recognised shortcomings in his side’s mentality and approach in the first half, and admitted the pressure surrounding the clash played a part in his players’ mindset.
“We were nowhere near good enough in the first half,” he said.
“We were too passive, and I will take some of the blame in that.
“We were cut open too easily and it is harder to take because we should have scored in the first half.
“In the second half, we responded. We just wanted to win that half.
“We had to change the mindset completely, but we restarted with a strong aggressive press, and played some good football.
“There was pressure. A massive backing, live on Sky, I think our approach was wrong, but we will take that into account.
“We were nowhere near good enough in the first half. We were cut open too easily. Our approach was wrong.”
The 52-year-old acknowledged how his side have to start games in a different manner, and not let “goals deflate you”.
He hopes they can become tactically and mentally stronger, starting against Sky Bet League One side Barnsley in their final Bristol Street Motors Trophy Northern Group F encounter on Tuesday.
He added: “We have to start looking at the first 10 minutes of the game completely differently.
“We need to make sure we do not concede. By the time the game calms down, we are already 1-0 down, and chasing the game.
“I think in this league, goals deflate you. We can get better, and tactically we can become stronger, but it is about taking positives.
“We played well, and I do not think Notts County enjoyed the second half.
“Today was a sore one, but I hope we take the second-half performance and build on it.
“We need to back ourselves. We have showed signs of how we have played in my first two games, but we will look to build on that.”
