Sheffield Wednesday head coach Henrik Pedersen said his side need to “find a way to stay in the game longer”, but has praised their improvements in training.
Wednesday are still on the hunt for their first win of the season and are currently avoiding the bottom of the table by a point, thanks to local rivals Sheffield United who have lost all five of their games this season.
Last Saturday’s defeat to Bristol City was a case in point as the Owls were 3-0 down by the interval with no hope of getting back into the contest.
“Today we have had a really good training session which is a good start,” Pedersen told BBC Radio Sheffield.
“We have to find a way where we can stay in the game for a little bit longer, so we don’t end the half after 45 minutes at 2-0 or 3-0.
“The first step is being very solid defensively, then maybe we need to play a little bit more simple on the ball so we can minimise the number of losses in our own half, but we need some courage and we need intensity and big discipline for our game plan.
“What I saw today in the training session was a really good with lots of discipline and intensity and good structure in the team – it would be a good beginning for a good game.”
On Saturday, Wednesday play Portsmouth (15:00 BST) with John Mousinho’s side occupying ninth following a positive start to the season, which has seen them lose just one game out out of their opening five fixtures.
However, Pompey keeper Nicolas Schmid is out due to a broken hand, an injury he suffered in their derby game against Southampton.
The Owls boss added: “Portsmouth are one of the sides that run the most, sprint the most with their acceleration. So, we have to match this as number one.
“Two, Josh Murphy on the left side is a great player with a lot of crossing ability, which is a battle we have to win and the second ball game is another battle we have to win.”