Carlos Carvalhal said scoring the first goal in the Championship is vital following the Owls’ 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa at Villa Park.
Despite heavy pressure from Wednesday, Villa took the lead when Jonathan Kodjia rose highest in the box to head the home side into the lead.
Things got even harder for the Owls after the break when Vincent Sasso was sent off for a late challenge on Conor Hourihane, with Carvalhal then being sent to the stands by referee Lee Probert for apparently leaving his technical area.
Kodjia made it 2-0 when he rounded Keiren Westwood and tapped the ball into an empty net to round off a frustrating afternoon for Wednesday.
The head coach said: “We came here to win the game.
“In the first half the first two or three chances to score was for us, but we did not achieve the goal.
“Aston Villa did not need more than one chance to score the first goal.
“In the Championship the first goal is very important, and unfortunately we didn’t get it today even though we had control at the beginning of the game.”
On the game’s moments of controversy, Carvalhal would not be drawn, other than confirming the reason for his own dismissal.
He added: “I do not talk about the decisions or the referee. The game is over and we move on to a very important game against Reading at Hillsborough on Friday.
“If you ask me about why I do not think it is important but I have talked to the referee and he has confirmed that I did not say one single thing that was offensive.
“He said I left the technical area and that is why this happened.”