Hibernian midfielder Ian Murray lamented his side's display in the 2-0 Intertoto Cup defeat by IF Elfsborg and admitted they are struggling to preserve their interest in the competition.
The 27-year-old was honest in his assessment of Sunday's Easter Road loss, as the high-flying Swedish outfit took a strong grip on the second-round tie ahead of this weekend's return leg in Boras.
Magnus Haglund's impressive team dominated the clash in Edinburgh, illustrating why they are second in the Swedish top flight and have lost only one match and three goals during their opening 12 outings.
Emir Bajrami and Andreas Augustsson struck goals in either half to secure the comfortable win and only poor finishing prevented a wider margin of victory.
Hibs, playing their first competitive match after returning early to pre-season training two weeks ago, were not up to speed and tired visibly in the second half.
Murray, back at Hibs for a second spell after stints at Rangers and Norwich, was not surprised at the quality on show from Elfsborg, who won their first national title in 45 years under Haglund in 2006.
But he was disappointed Mixu Paatelainen's men did not offer more and now fears their hopes of progressing to a meeting with Latvians FK Riga or Dublin side Bohemians could be over.
He said: "It was a hard shift. They showed their strengths well and beat us fairly comfortably, I felt.
"The goals were disappointing and I think our general play was fairly poor.
"We didn't play, we didn't create much, our shots were half-chances really. We didn't have a clear chance in the whole game.
"We knew what to expect, we knew they were going to be typical Scandinavians.
"We're disappointed we didn't get at their defence a little bit more because that was a weak spot we felt.
"There is a chance we can turn it round. Obviously, they are massive favourites and we're struggling to qualify.
"As long as we're in touch with them there is a very small chance, but we know it's going to be hard."
Hibs are seeking entry into the UEFA Cup but Murray knows even if they fail, the club's pre-season preparations will still have been worthwhile.
The Edinburgh-born player added: "We've got to take the positives - effectively it was a pre-season game for us.
"The players are disappointed, it's hard not to be when you get beaten, but the manager is fairly upbeat about the whole thing.
"It's hard at the moment to take too many things out of it, but quite honestly it was good for fitness.
"But you never know over there. If we get a goal at any time, as long as it has stayed 0-0, then we'll see what happens."
