David O'Leary did not even attempt to conceal his anguish.
"That was an absolutely shocking performance," he said after watching his Aston Villa team lose 3-1 at home to Everton on Saturday.
Not even the return of Darius Vassell, or an equaliser by Nolberto Solano at the start of the second half, could overshadow what was an impoverished effort.
Everton's display, which was one of strength and skill, did much to ensure that Villa did not play but O'Leary was much more interested in what his own players failed to achieve.
With rare emotion, the Villa manager said: "We were outplayed, out- bullied, out-muscled and out-fought. The icing on the cake was that we also gifted them goals and, in all honesty, Everton could have scored more.
"After being outplayed in the first half, I had words and we got off to a great start with an equaliser at the start of the second period. But then we gave away another diabolical goal and Everton drove on again and really dominated us.
"They were on top of us in midfield and at the back and did not give us a kick up front. It was a bad day at the office, our worst performance since I came here nearly two years ago.
"Everton will be delighted with their victory and showed the hard edge which has got them to where they are this season.
"The best team won by a mile but we certainly helped them. The only crumb of comfort was having Darius Vassell on the pitch for 30 minutes to get a bit of fitness after his long-term injury but there was nothing to take from the game, apart from that."
O'Leary later revised his view to say that the performance was the worst at home since he took charge, but that was hardly a consolation to the players or to the supporters.
O'Leary watched in horror as Everton stepped up their bid for a place in the Uefa Champions League with a performance of intelligence, fortitude and skill.
Goals by Leon Osman (two) and Tim Cahill earned the Merseysiders their first win at Villa Park since 1987, putting them eight points clear of Liverpool, who occupy fifth position.
The final whistle was greeted with a crescendo of boos from Villa supporters who cannot believe that the club is still in a state of transition.
Still, there is hope that the return of Vassell, the England international striker, will provide the club with a springboard to secure a European place.
Vassell emerged as a substitute in the 62nd minute and, while he did not come close to scoring, his mere presence suggests that Villa can only improve in their final ten matches of the season.
"Every game is hard for us," O'Leary said. "We are a team, not individuals. We are a team of a good, honest bunch of lads. We have got to play as a team. We have not got a Thierry Henry who can do a bit of magic. All of us have got to be at it together. That is our strength.
"We are a mid-table team who can either drop down from tenth to 12th or go up to sixth like last season if we get some results, but to get that we have got to be all together, working hard.
"We cannot carry anyone and we cannot depend on someone to produce an individual piece of magic. It is a team thing and the whole team had a bad day."
David Moyes, the Everton manager, watched his team produce a performance that belied their reputation for being all about hard work and little else.
"That was an excellent result," he said. " The performance was really good but I have sensed that it has been coming.
"We have seen bits of it in recent games and there was a real desire to make sure we got the points today. I think it would be wrong to single people out although [Mikael] Arteta was magnificent in midfield and [Lee] Carsley also did a great job.
"It was hard to think of anyone who was not on their game. We showed lots of commitment, but I also think there was some terrific football on top of that.
"Villa have got a terrific home record and Everton have not done well here in recent years, so it was nice to put that record straight. We made chances, we got crosses in, we mixed our game up tremendously and, all round, the players did everything we asked of them."
