Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho refused to shoulder the blame for his side's 1-0 defeat at Real Betis on Saturday night.
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The winner arrived on 17 minutes courtesy of a Benat strike at the Estadio Benito Villamarin which condemned Los Merengues to their third loss of the season and left them trailing Barcelona by eight points at the top of the standings.
The Blaugrana have a chance to open the gap when they visit Levante on Sunday evening, with Mourinho forced to respond to claims his team cannot keep pace with their arch-rivals in the title race.
But the 49-year-old mentor insists he was not at fault for Real's latest setback and instead pointed the finger at his players, saying: "When we win, we all win, but when we lose, the coach loses. Why is it my fault?
"I try to be fair and objective, and when my team lose, I do not seek excuses or blame other things. Obviously some players played Wednesday who could not play today.
"Obviously there are other teams that have an easier match calendar but we are talking about top professionals and you have to take into account mental toughness, ambition and spirit.
"A player of 23 or 24 years should be able to play two games in four days. As always, because I speak out, and I'm the only one who has spoken out, I'll be the bad guy."
The La Liga champions dominated proceedings on the night but found the hosts in resilient mood, although Karim Benzema had a goal ruled out for off-side, while Madrid also saw their appeals for a penalty turned away when Nosa appeared to handle inside his own area.
But Mourinho tipped his hat to Pepe Mel's charges for holding on for a famous win as they bounced back from a heavy 5-1 reverse against Sevilla last weekend.
"After a difficult week and some conflict with his players, the fans of Betis have helped [coach Pepe Mel's] team win," he said. "I've congratulated the Betis players because they left everything on the pitch and fought with a spirit of sacrifice.
"[The referee] was hugely at fault for a wrongly-disallowed Benzema goal and a clear penalty in the closing minutes. But [Betis] deserve my respect because they outplayed Real Madrid.
"We started well, but only a little bit better than we played for the rest of the game. It's possible that we could finish the season 11, 13 or nine points behind Barcelona.
"The liga race is still open, but we're neither optimistic or pessimistic. I can't focus on a single competition."
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