Thomas Tuchel suggested Borussia Dortmund deserved better than a goalless draw with rivals Schalke on Saturday.
Tuchel's men are now four league games without victory, representing their worst run since the 43-year-old took charge in June 2015.
The failure of Mario Gotze and Christian Pulisic to convert late chances means Dortmund find themselves eight points behind league leaders Bayern Munich after just nine games.
But Tuchel was encouraged by the performance and said Dortmund deserved more from the game.
"We were closer to winning the game than Schalke. We made a lot of unforced errors in the 1st half and struggled to find a rhythm," he told DW Sports.
"But in the second half, we were more structured and clearly the better team.
"In football you don't always get the results you deserve."
Gotze echoed the remarks of his coach, after his effort in the second half was saved by Schalke keeper Ralf Fahrmann.
"We had chances, we could have scored. We always want to win at home. I'm happy with the performance, less so with the result," the 24-year-old said.
Dortmund have been rocked by a series of injuries to key players over recent weeks, though both Pulisic and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang returned after missing Wednesday's DFB-Pokal victory over Union Berlin.
"Our second-half performance tonight and our improving injury situation give us reasons to be positive going forward," Tuchel said.
