Zinedine Zidane felt Real Madrid did not deserve to lose against Espanyol, despite admitting they were poor in the second half at the RCDE Stadium.
The champions saw their five-game winning run in all competitions emphatically ended when Gerard Moreno slammed home a dramatic late winner for lowly Espanyol.
The 1-0 defeat will lead to questions over Zidane's decision to rest Cristiano Ronaldo, while Karim Benzema started the midweek fixture on the bench.
Benzema did come on as Madrid pushed for a late winner, only to be caught on the counter when Sergio Garcia's cross allowed Moreno to score in the third minute of added time.