'Gutted' Jagielka concedes naivety cost Everton dear

"We were all aware of the situation before the game kicked off, and if we'd won then maybe it would have been brushed under the carpet for another week.

"As it was, we lost. We know everybody is going to make a big deal about it again now.

"But we have enough good players here already to ground out results, and from 2-1 up we should have gone on to win the game or at worst drawn it. But naivety cost us.

"The manner in which we lost was tough to take. The first half was absolutely average on our part, but in the second half we thought we did a little bit better, but once we went ahead we fell asleep and conceded two sloppy goals.

"If you'd have given us a 2-1 lead last season, more often than not we would have kept it. So we're really gutted to have lost 3-2. But it's only us that can put it right.

"Hopefully we'll have some players in by the time the window closes. But we might have to wait a little bit because a lot of teams aren't prepared to sell players at a decent price at the moment."

Blackburn dominated the first half and went ahead through David Dunn's 22nd-minute strike only for Mikel Arteta to equalise with a clever free-kick on the stroke of half-time.

Arteta then turned provider for Yakubu on 64 minutes, but two minutes later a mistake by Joleon Lescott allowed Roque Santa Cruz to equalise.

Everton lost to a controversial injury-time goal by Andre Ooijer in which Ryan Nelsen, whose initial header hit the post, appeared offside when Stephen Warnock took the free-kick.

And of the game, Moyes said: "I was nearly happy that we were going to go in at half-time 1-0 down. Mikel scored a really good goal which made us feel a bit brighter and we were able to rally them a little bit. I thought the second half performance was much better.

"I thought when we got 2-1 in front that my experienced defenders would do enough. That was the one area of the team that was very strong last year, so I'm very disappointed that we lost three goals.

"The second goal was so poor. And the third. We gave away a silly free-kick and, yes, it was offside. (Nelson) starts off in an offside position - which he is entitled to do - and when the ball leaves (Stephen) Warnock's foot, he's still offside.

"He then comes back onside but he is the one who heads it. Now we have been told that if he comes back on and he interferes with it (then he is offside). But, no excuse, we didn't deal well enough with it. In the same breath, you hope you get that little bit of fortune.

"I've told (the officials). I think it's a really hard job for the linesman to see who headed it. But we all abide by these rules."

Moyes and his players were jeered by sections of the Goodison crowd at the final whistle.

And Blackburn Rovers manager Paul Ince, celebrating victory in his first game in charge at the club, believes that was unfair on the Everton manager.

"I was disappointed with the fans' reaction towards him because people forget what a great man he has been for Everton and he doesn't deserve that on the first game of the season," said Ince.

"I just don't like to see fans booing someone like Moyesy first game of the season when he has done an absolutely fantastic job at this club. He's the yardstick for people like myself working on limited resources."