Newcastle United manager Steve McClaren revealed they requested for the kick-off time for their trip to West Ham on Monday pushed back after arriving late at Upton Park.
McClaren's men were affected by traffic getting to the ground, and failed to fire in a 2-0 loss - their fourth straight Premier League fixture in which they have gone scoreless, leaving them bottom of the table.
The former Derby County and Twente boss said his players could only squeeze in a 10-minute warm-up, and wanted the 20:00 local time (19:00 GMT) kick-off pushed back but his request was ignored.
"We felt the preparation wasn't long enough. We asked the referee," McClaren told a news conference.
"I've been in football long enough, and it's usually permitted. It wasn't. We had to deal with that."
McClaren added: "I think it was the Premier League that made that call."
Sitting at the foot of the English top flight, McClaren defended the calibre of the cattle at his disposal five games in.
"We've got talented players. We didn't do the basics tonight well, which we've been doing for four games," McClaren said.
"It's a process - this is normal.
"These type of nights and games, you don't like going through them. It's painful.
"But sometimes you have to learn about your individuals and your team.
"And we have to learn and move on, and make sure we give a reaction on Saturday.
He added: "We don't want them to do that [be over anxious], they're talented players, they've got ability, they've got quality. That's what we've got.
"They've shown that for four games, they haven't tonight. They've been told it's disappointing, they're disappointed."
Newcastle next host Watford at St James' Park on Saturday.
