Patrick Vieira bemoaned a lack of aggression after his Nice side slumped to a "catastrophic" 4-0 defeat to Dijon.
Nice have taken just one point from their opening three games and were thumped by Dijon at the Allianz Riviera on Saturday.
Naif Aguerd put Dijon ahead in the 67th minute before the visitors made the game safe late on, Oussama Haddadi doubling the lead in the 83rd minute and Jules Keita scoring a double to give the scoreline an emphatic look.
Dijon are the one team in Ligue 1 to have kept pace with defending champions Paris Saint-Germain with three wins from three, but Vieira was left to reflect on a disappointing evening for Les Aiglons.
"This is a catastrophic scenario for us. Losing 4-0 at home is hard to accept," Vieria said. "We have created many opportunities without scoring.
"We were shy. The message to the players at the end of the match was this: Playing well is not enough. We need more. We did not get it tonight.
"Defeat is due to lack of success and aggression. We lack character, personality and aggressiveness.
"That's why this scenario has become catastrophic. We do not have enough players to carry the team up.
"It is when one is in difficulty that you see the character of each one. It's a nice challenge to take up.
"This lack of rigour and aggressiveness summarises the first matches. We are in difficulty, but I believe in this group, in the players.
"We will work to react from the next match."
Nice visit Lyon as they seek a first win of the campaign on Friday.
