Massimiliano Allegri has urged Juventus to "play ugly" after his side dropped two points in Saturday's 1-1 Serie A draw with Venezia.
Juve had won three successive matches in all competitions without conceding ahead their trip to Stadio Pier Luigi Penzo, where they opened the scoring through Alvaro Morata.
However, the Bianconeri wasted a good chance to double their lead through Juan Cuadrado before half-time and were made to pay 10 minutes into the second period.
Former Torino man Mattia Aramu guided a first-time shot past Wojciech Szczesny from range and Juve, who lost Paulo Dybala to an early injury, failed to muster a response.
The visitors finished with an expected goals (xG) return of 2.13 compared to Venezia's 0.54, but Juve were made to pay for a lack of cutting edge in front of goal.
Juve are now six points adrift of fourth-placed Atalanta, who face Hellas Verona on Sunday, and Allegri admitted his side need to improve in certain areas after their latest setback.
"It was a good first half, but then we had a 10- or 15-minute blackout before the Venezia goal," he told DAZN.
"The same thing happened against Salernitana recently – we were lucky then not to concede as they hit the post – so it's something we clearly need to work on.
"We were under pressure, couldn't play the ball to feet anymore, so we should've had patience with one or two balls over the top to the strikers, but we didn't do that.
"We had to attack the space, force them into fouls and more yellow cards, but we threw away two points against a good Venezia side.
"At the start of the second half we were wandering about, giving the ball straight back. Sometimes we don't realise the game is getting 'ugly' and we don't read the moment.
"Once that moment passed, we started playing again and pinned Venezia back into their own half, but the damage was done."
Allegri added: "We have players without a great deal of experience. The whole team was a bit sluggish after the restart.
"We can't seem to realise when it's the time to play pretty and those 10, 15 minutes we ought to play ugly, grit our teeth and push through."
Dybala hobbled off against Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday and lasted just 12 minutes before being replaced against Venezia.
"We ran a risk, and it went badly," Allegri said. "He went off on Wednesday with a muscular issue; we hoped he was better now, but that was not the case."
Juventus, who had won 15 of their previous 17 league meetings with Venezia, could find themselves nine points off the Champions League places come the end of the weekend.
"We mustn't think about that," the coach said. "We threw away two points today, two points we should've brought home."
Coventry City 2-3 Hull City: Tigers win five-goal thriller to keep play-off hopes alive
Hull City kept their hopes of gatecrashing the Championship play-offs alive with a thrilling 3-2 win over beaten FA Cup semi-finalists Coventry City on Wednesday.
Noah Ohio scored the winner with his first touch after coming on as a second-half substitute as Hull moved within three points of sixth-placed Norwich City with two games to play.
Coventry, meanwhile, saw their own hopes of returning to Wembley Stadium for a second successive play-off final all but ended, as they sit six points further back with three matches remaining.
Three days on from their remarkable comeback against Manchester United, the Sky Blues twice fought back to level things at Coventry Building Society Arena. Jaden Philogene's shot squirmed under goalkeeper Bradley Collins to put Hull ahead 31 minutes in, but Kasey Palmer levelled within five minutes with a stunning free-kick.
Hull went back ahead in controversial circumstances on the stroke of half-time, Liverpool loanee Fabio Carvalho converting from the penalty spot despite replays showing Joel Latibeaudiere's foul on Liam Delap took place outside the area.
Mark Robins' men again dragged themselves back into the game as Bobby Thomas headed Jay Dasilva's cross in just before the hour mark, but it was Liam Rosenior's visitors who found a winner.
Thomas went from hero to villain as his poor back pass sold Collins short, and Ohio got a toe to the ball to score the winner, keeping Hull's hopes of Premier League football intact.
Van Dijk: Liverpool have 'no chance' in title race after derby defeat
Virgil van Dijk conceded Liverpool might be out of the Premier League title race after they suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat to Everton in Wednesday's Merseyside derby.
Jarrad Branthwaite and Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored in either half to give the Toffees their first win over Liverpool at Goodison Park since 2010.
Liverpool struggled to find a way through the Toffees' defence despite dominating for long periods, and the Reds' captain says they will not outlast Arsenal and Manchester City without major improvements.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Van Dijk said: "If we play like today, then we have no chance to consider ourselves in the title race.
"We have to just focus on the next game and that will be a tough one anyway, so we will see.
"We're very disappointed, in so many ways. I think everyone has to look at their own performances. Did they really give everything, and do they really want to win the league?
"We're still fighting and there are still games after tonight, but if we play like we did overall in the game today – not winning challenges and giving the referee a chance to give free-kicks like he did many times, then you have no chance to win the title."
Howe: Newcastle performance in Palace defeat 'way off' Spurs win
Eddie Howe admitted Newcastle United's performance in the 2-0 loss at Crystal Palace on Wednesday was "way off" the one that saw them thump Tottenham in their previous game.
Howe's men hammered Spurs 4-0 in their last match, but they never got close to matching the attacking verve from that outing and a Jean-Philippe Mateta double condemned the Magpies to defeat at Selhurst Park.
Newcastle didn't even manage a shot on target until the 87th minute, accumulating just 0.42 xG (expected goals) as the likes of Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon struggled to make an impact.
Only against Manchester City in August (one) have Newcastle recorded fewer shots on target in a Premier League game this season than their two against Palace, and Howe was critical of his team's display in the loss, one that all but ends their hopes of finishing in the top four.
"[It is a] bad day for us," Howe told Newcastle's club media.
"I thought we were disappointing today, especially in the first 60 minutes. We were way off our levels against Tottenham and our best levels.
"I thought technically we didn't deliver a good performance, and out of possession I don't think it was a particularly good performance either."
Newcastle were unlocked twice for Mateta to score by a Palace side who themselves only generated 0.88 xG.
Howe was left frustrated by the manner in which his side conceded, adding: "I think we'll be disappointed with our performance technically today, and that's probably epitomised by the two goals where we're disappointed with how we've given them the ball in those situations and then how we defended.
"I think the goals sum up aspects of our performance where there was some good, lots of moments that could have led to opportunities, but we were slow to shoot around the box," he said.
The defeat, combined with Manchester United's 4-2 win over Sheffield United, means Newcastle drop to seventh, while eighth-placed West Ham are two points behind with a game in hand.
Newcastle have now lost eight of their last 11 Premier League away games, while they have lost on four occasions in London in the league this term, only doing so more times in a Premier League season in 2000-01 and 2005-06 (both five).
It's been a disappointing season for Howe and his side, especially compared to the heroics of last term when Newcastle finished in the top four, and the Magpies boss knows there's work to be done to get back to those levels.
"It's a day that we have to take our punishment, deal with it, and then try and improve," Howe continued. "It's frustrating because we know we're capable of much better."
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